The Tennessee Valley Authority issued important information for the holiday weekend before boater’s head out.
(SEVIERVILLE, Tenn.) SMOKIES.LIVE – TVA said people heading out to area lake should expect lakes to be low due to the ongoing drought across much of the Tennessee Valley area.
Major tributary lakes including Norris, Douglas, Cherokee, Fontana, South Holston, Watauga, Boone, Blue Ridge, Chatuge, Nottely and Hiwassee are currently several feet below target summer pool levels.
In previous coverage, TVA had said run off this year was at about 45% of normal.
Actual rainfall for the calendar year through May 3 is 13.04 inches. Normal is 18.72 inches. TVA said, the big number is runoff. TVA has recorded 5.83 inches of runoff system wide. Normal is 12.92 inches. So, we are at 45% of normal runoff.
“Even with drought conditions, we still have a lot of water in our reservoirs. We encourage people to get out and use these resources, we courage them to do it safely,” he added. “They may be little lower if they go to a certain area of a reservoir, those conditions maybe shallower than in previous years.”
Lakes along the main Tennessee River, including Fort Loudoun, Watts Bar and Chickamauga, are also running lower than typical for this time of year.
“While rainfall is forecast over the next several days, the rain is expected to be spread out over multiple days and may not significantly improve lake levels, especially those that are well below target,” TVA said in a statement.
Boaters should use extra caution on the water and watch for exposed rocks, debris and areas that may be shallower than normal.
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