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River flows remain high

Water levels in the Big Horn River south of Boysen Dam were increased again Tuesday, going up to 7,500 cubic feet per second.

Emergency Management Coordinator Bill Gordon said the river should start reducing in speed after this increase.

“The plan is 7,500 is as high as it goes,” Gordon said.

This all comes from the Bureau of Reclamation who oversees water resource management throughout the country.

Marshy and boggy stretches along the river will likely begin to be flooded, and residents are being asked to continue to stay away from the river, as flow levels are high.

However, while flow levels are high, residences along the river should not be affected by the flow increase.

As Gordon pointed out earlier this year, the Big Horn has seen flow rates as high as 10,000 cubic feet per second in the past without causing much damage.

The recent flooding and river flow increases come only months after the Bureau of Reclamation thought we would be seeing a dry year, based on their data at the time.

But May proved their information wrong as rainfall came down heavily causing some local flooding, as well as dragging high amounts of water and snowpack into Boysen Dam.

The peak runoff into Boysen Reservoir from the Wind River Mountains is expected to happen late this week, so outflow from the reservoir is expected to continue at the 7,500 cfs rate for at least another week.

 

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