3/23/2024
WT Staff
WEEKEND WATER REPORT
GA, LA continue to flood, NY on flood watch today
OH heading for drought
Water news for Saturday, March 23, 2024 updated 110 pm EDT
Streamflow Situation provisional data supplied by USGS
Much below seasonal normal streamflows began taking over the Ohio network of flow monitoring stations Thursday with all basins appearing on equal footing to become dry in short order. Earlier in the week, equal parts normal and below normal shifted to a map with very few normal ratings Saturday and many more stations reporting much below the seasonal normal across the board.
Blanchard River remains at the 1st percentile, extreme low flow near Findlay. Normal is the highest flow rating on the dashboard, there are not many normal results in any of the basins.
As many Ohio drinking water facilities are supplied from surface water bodies including lakes, rivers and reservoirs, the streamflow situation is pertinent to both drinking water supply and quality. High flows can stir up sediment and cause turbidity in the raw source water, requiring additional treatment to render the water potable. Low flow volume is linked to shallower conditons and warmer temperatures in surface water bodies, which can be an issue for water quality where HABs are present.
WTOH.us tracks current streamflow conditions with an eye to the impacts on drinking water supply and quality in 32 watersheds of the state's 5 drainage basins. Check the watershed layer on the map to see the high and low streamflows that may be impacting drinking water water in Ohio today.
Drought Map USGS 7-day average streamflow against seasonal average
Muskingum River basin's Tuscarawas River watershed and Upper Ohio minor tributary Shenango River watershed have joined the drought map at the entry level rating of below normal Saturday. Upper Ohio River minor tributary Little Beaver Creek watershed remains at below normal from yesterday. Lake Erie basin Ashtabula-Chagrin River watershed still below normal from earlier in the week.e Given the streamflow trends tilting toward lower than normal flows statewide, expect to see the drought map fill up over the weekend.
Flood Tracker provisional data from USGS streamflow monitors
Twenty streamflow gauges record flood stage in continental USA Saturday, down from twenty-four this time yesterday.
WT tracks flooding at twelve of these locations, six located in Georgia and six in Louisiana. As of this report, NY and OH are not seeing active flooding in the USGS network. More to follow as the rain falls on NYC and flood watch in effect.
Two streamflow gauges have begun lighting up the flood map Saturday afternoon, reaching 99th percentile flows on Long Island, NY, currently under NWS Flood Watch. Valley Stream is flowing high at Valley Stream, running 1.82 ft deep at 42.9 cubic feet per second. A tributary to Bellmore Creek is flowing 99th percentile at Bellmore, running 2.64 ft deep at 16.6 cubic feet per second. These monitoring stations do not have established flood stages, so we will not know when overflow occurs. Local weather spotters are encouraged to report to NWS.
See the blue tags on the map for updated high flow flow values here WaterToday New York
Two rivers continue to flood in south Georgia Saturday. Altamaha River began to show the first signs of slowing down at its top end Thursday, receding half a foot overnight. As of this report, the flood level measured near Charlotteville is just over half a foot above flood stage. Downstream monitors near Baxley, at Doctortown and at Everett City record water levels from half a foot to three feet over. Flow volume provisional data captures the reduced volume Saturday, from 33 thousand Friday down to 28600 cubic feet per second near Charlotteville, the bulk of flood water has shifted downstream toward the outlet, still above 60 thousand cubic feet per second moving through Everett City to the outlet at Brunswick. Savannah River is still chugging along a foot and a half above flood stage near Milhaven and four feet out of the channel near Cylo.
See black tags on the map for flood levels updated daily and a running timeline of the March 2024 flood event here: WaterToday Georgia
Louisiana records flooding on the same six monitors Saturday. In Region 1 watershed in the northwest, Bayou Dorcheat runs two feet over flood stage near Springhill, a foot and inches over flood stage downstream at Minden, trending down. Bayou Bodcau has levelled off overnight, still six feet above flood stage near Shreveport. In Region 4 in the southwest, Sabine River runs six inches above flood stage according to the monitor located near Ruliff, TX. In the east, Pearl River holds a steady two and a half feet above flood stage spreading out at 331800 cubic feet per second near Bogalusa, more than two and a half feet over downstream at the municipality of Pearl River.
See the black tags on the map for updated flood flow values at WaterToday Louisiana https://www.wtla.us
Hazardous Spills
Spills in Ohio are reported to the 24 hour emergency spill hotline with response handled by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency 24/7 at 1-800-282-9378 or 614-224-0946. Anyone with knowledge of a spill of hazardous material is to make a report. Refer to the Spill button to the right of the map for more details on the latest incidents reported to OEPA.
Drinking Water Advisories
Columbiana County - Some water connections in Calcutta came under BWA a water main break Wednesday. The Buckeye Water District has issued the boil advisory for all of Meadowbrook Circle until further notice.
Athens County - several streets in Nelsonville were impacted by a boil water order following a water main break Wednesday Mar 20.
See yellow tags on the map for more boil water advisories.
Harmful Algal Blooms - Lake Erie HAB from National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) satellite monitoring program
Ohio EPA cites spring rains as the main factor dislodging and transporting nutrients off the landscape of Maumee River watershed into the Lake Erie west basin. To the degree that we have rain, we can expect to see the mobilization of dissolved phosphate toward Lake Erie, which in turn feeds cyanobacteria resident in the lake. WTOH has kept a watchful eye on the sleepy HAB over the winter, with localized dribs and drabs popping up from time to time, all at moderate to low concentration.
After the flooding of Portage and Tiffin Rivers last weekend, a burst of HAB activity showed up in Lake Erie as captured by the NCCOS satellite imaging on March 17.
The latest satellite image supplied by the NCCOS was captured March 21 at surface wind speed 9.9 mph. This is the first clear view of Lake Erie open water and shoreline since March 17. This image is cloud obscured from North Maumee Bay up the Michigan shoreline, and clear to the east edge of the frame at Vermilion-on-the-Lake. We see HAB activity in open water outside Maumee Bay, along shore at Metzger Marsh and Magee Marsh. These HABs have the appearance of moderate concentration, 100 thousand cells per 100 ml or less.
USGS Provisional Data Statement
Data are provisional and subject to revision until they have been thoroughly reviewed and received final approval. Current condition data relayed by satellite or other telemetry are automatically screened to not display improbable values until they can be verified.
Provisional data may be inaccurate due to instrument malfunctions or physical changes at the measurement site. Subsequent review based on field inspections and measurements may result in significant revisions to the data.
Data users are cautioned to consider carefully the provisional nature of the information before using it for decisions that concern personal or public safety or the conduct of business that involves substantial monetary or operational consequences. Information concerning the accuracy and appropriate uses of these data or concerning other hydrologic data may be obtained from the USGS.
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