OMAHA, Neb. -- Gavins Point Dam releases were reduced from 38,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) this morning and will be reduced to 28,000 cfs this evening. Releases from Fort Randall Dam remain at 0 cfs. The Corps plans to continue making Gavins Point releases reductions until it reaches 20,000 cfs.
“My staff has evaluated the impact of the major storm in early March. Preliminary indications are that the annual runoff in the Missouri Basin above Sioux City, Iowa will be more than what was forecast on March 1. We will continue to monitor runoff conditions as the temperatures in the upper basin warm and begin to melt the remaining plains snowpack,” said John Remus, chief of the Corps’ Missouri River Water Management Division.
The Gavins Point pool elevation is 1208.9 feet, declining about 0.5 foot in the last 24 hours. As inflows between the Fort Randall and Gavins Point Dams continue to decline over the next few days, Fort Randall releases will be initiated.
The National Weather Service is forecasting high flows from melting snowpack in the coming weeks on the Big Sioux, Vermillion, and James Rivers in eastern South Dakota.
Frost depths remain very deep and soils are very wet in these basins and across the entire lower Missouri River basin. These conditions will result in a significant portion of the melted snowpack become direct runoff into smaller streams, and eventually, into the Missouri River.
Gavins Point release changes take two to three days to reach Omaha, three to four days to reach Nebraska City, and four to five days to reach Kansas City, Missouri.
Public safety remains a priority and local emergency managers are the best resource for information. For questions or concerns or call 211 is a National Resource hotline and website geared to local area needs.
The Corps has established webpage at go.usa.gov/xE6fC (the URL is case sensitive) that can be saved to your mobile phone’s home screen which provides links to the most up-to-date information from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers including runoff and release schedules, links to the Omaha and Kansas City Districts, links to our social media accounts, and provides a link to the National Weather Service, Missouri Basin River Forecast Center. We have also provided links to the “App” on Facebook and Twitter.