The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Raystown Lake began a scheduled drawdown of the lake to complete preventive maintenance work on the dam and to enhance shoreline stabilization projects in Seven Points.
The Corps has authority to draw the lake down a maximum of nine feet in order to complete this routine maintenance. This will lower the lake level from a normal pool of 786.5 to 777.5 NGVD. Operators at the dam will allow the lake to return to its normal elevation by the end of the spring flooding season but the exact time frame will be based on snow melt and early spring precipitation.
Boaters should be aware that some boat ramps will be unusable at lower lake levels.
“Currently the lake level is 6 feet below normal which makes the Aitch and Weaver Falls boat ramps inaccessible”, said Nick Krupa, Operations Manager at Raystown Lake. Krupa emphasized that boaters should be especially cautious during the drawdown because lower lake levels may expose hazards that are not normally encountered.
During this drawdown period, the primary mission of the Raystown Lake Project will remain flood control. Therefore, fluctuations in lake level conditions or variations in the drawdown schedule may occur to meet the demand of the flood control mission.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to encourage the use of lifejackets even during the cold winter months.
For more information on Raystown Lake, visit http://www.nab.usace.army.mil/Missions/DamsRecreation/Raystown.aspx or call (814) 658-3405.
Release no. 14-038