Water being held upstream on Cumberland River until Lake Barkley levels can recede

As storms begin to move out of Tennessee and Kentucky, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District is focused on moving water through the Cumberland River basin in stages to reduce flood impacts in the lower portions of the river at Dover, Clarksville and Lake Barkley. 

Water managers are moving flood water through downstream facilities like Cordell Hull Dam, Old Hickory Dam, Cheatham Dam and Barkley Dam. Meanwhile, they're holding water at upstream storage reservoirs at Lake Cumberland, Dale Hollow Lake, Center Hill Lake, and J. Percy Priest Lake.

At Barkley Dam, the discharge is currently 205,000 cubic feet per second. The boat ramp below Barkley Dam will remain closed while discharges from the dam exceed 78,000 cfs. 

Cheatham Dam on the Cumberland River in Ashland City is currently operating with its spillway gates fully extended while allowing flows, which are currently at 110,000 cubic feet per second, to flow unimpeded. 


"The primary focus and problem areas are downstream of Nashville," said Robert Dillingham, hydraulic engineer in the Nashville District Water Management Section. "The river in Nashville is cresting and we have no further concerns in this area."

Cordell Hull Lake, Old Hickory Lake, and J. Percy Priest Lake received between 3.5 and 4.5 inches of rain, but downstream, Cheatham Lake received 6.5 inches of rain and Lake Barkley totaled nearly 10 inches.

Water managers are balancing efforts to hold and release water in steps through the dams to reduce flood risks and support safe navigation.

"We have stored lots of water at our storage projects and those pools are rising. In the coming days and weeks, we will ramp up releases from those lakes to recover storage," Dillingham explained. "As downstream conditions begin receding, we are going to start making controlled releases from our upstream dams."