For the first month since December, the Savannah River reservoirs recorded above-average rainfall in April.
The Hartwell sub-basin received 112 percent of normal rainfall for April; Russell got 124 percent of normal, and Thurmond ranked the highest with 125 percent of normal rainfall.
The majority of April’s rainfall occurred during several concentrated storms in the first half of the month. The heaviest rain event occurred on April 7, when Hartwell received 3 inches of rain within 24 hours. That same day, Russell and Thurmond each recorded more than 2 inches. This prompted our water managers to increase outflows at the dams to manage for flood control.
At the same time, we had just begun our fish spawning period on April 5. That brought an additional challenge, as we had to maintain pool levels with no more than a six-inch drop in the midst of heavy rainfall.
As we enter the summer recreation season, we expect to see near-normal amounts of rainfall over the next few months. Our latest 10-week projections target full pool at Hartwell Lake through June. At Thurmond, we continue to target a half foot below full pool while workers execute gate repairs.
As always, we welcome your questions and comments. Thanks for reading!
~Tracy Robillard, public affairs specialist
