TVA: 242 billion gallons spilled from Barkley, Kentucky dams in past 24 hours

UPDATE:
On Wednesday, as the atmospheric river began to dump rain across Kentucky, TVA had already begun to spill 1 million gallons of water per second over Kentucky Dam to prepare for the surge of water that will soon find its way down the Tennessee River.

The Army Corps of Engineers has been doing the same at Barkley Dam.

As of Saturday, officials said the two dams combined have released more than 242 billion gallons just in the last 24 hours.

That’s more than 170,000 cubic feet per second, which still falls well short of the record 303,000 cubic feet per second in 2011.

At 2 p.m. Thursday, Kentucky Dam was spilling 142,000 gallons an hour, with a reservoir elevation at 354.77 feet, and a tailwater elevation at 316.80 feet.

By 1 p.m. Saturday, Kentucky Dam was spilling 229,600 gallons an hour, with a reservoir elevation at 356.38 feet, and a tailwater elevation at 328.35 feet.

It will take weeks for all of the residual runoff to make its way along the length of the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers and their tributaries, draining nearly 60,000 square miles in Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia.



ORIGINAL STORY:
The Tennessee Valley Authority said they are lowering Kentucky Lake to prepare for the expecting rain. 

The TVA said they are coordinating with the Army Corps of Engineers to help reduce potential flooding on the lower Ohio River.

They will have 12 gates open by the end of Wednesday and expect to be spilling approximately 1 million gallons per second. They said lowering the lake level will create storage in the reservoir to hold back water later and mitigate flooding down stream and on the Ohio River.

The TVA also reminds boaters they should not approach the dam as the water turbulence is very dangerous.

Operators estimate Kentucky Lake should be at or near its summer pool level by the end of the week.


PHOTO - Tennessee Valley Authority Facebook