More Flooding at Lewisville Lake

Rain, rain, please go away.  When we woke up this morning, the rain gauge indicated we had had 3 inches of rain overnight.  That could not be good.

It was only after we turned on the tv that we discovered we had gotten off lightly.  Many other areas in the metroplex had gotten over 6 inches of rain.  The news reported that freeways were flooded and high water rescues were in progress.   The new rainfall total for the month at DFW is now 16.07", an all time record for the month of May...or at least for the 117 years they have been keeping records.


What about problems in our immediate area?  The exit ramp to Garden Ridge from southbound I-35E is closed due to high water and is expected to be closed for at least several days.  Highland Village Road near the interstate is closed due to flooding. The exit ramp to FM 407 from southbound I-35E was closed for much of the day due to flooding.

Highland Village Road (5-29-15) looking east through the construction site towards the service drive and I-35E, courtesy of City of Highland Village

Those closings near the interstate will certainly add to the fun on I-35E this weekend, since the FM 407 bridge is scheduled to close permanently tonight.  Access across the interstate will not be restored until summer of 2016.

But back to the water issues.  Lewisville Lake is now (6:30 pm, 5-29-15) at 535.85 feet.  That is 13.85 feet over the conservation level (522') and 3.85 feet over the spillway (532').  Perhaps most importantly, it is only about a foot below the flow easement of 537', which is where real property damage would likely begin to occur.  It is above the flow easement where people can build permanent structures on their property.  How much will be impacted?  I don't know, but the county currently has an interesting map showing where the lake would be if it got to 538'.

With water at historical levels, we had to go check it out for ourselves.  We first of all went to see the Lake Lewisville spillway, which is on the east end of the dam near The Colony.  Unfortunately we could not get to a good location to see much.  It was obvious from the cars pickup trucks parked along the road that some had decided to hike along the top of the dam past the "authorized persons only" sign to see the spillway up close.  We decided against that, but did see that the water was almost up to the level of Business 121 where the spillway water runs into the Trinity River.

With little to see there, we revisited the sites we discussed in the previous post.  The water was only about 1.5' higher this afternoon than on Tuesday, but oh what a difference!

1.  Lake Park Road at Lake Park Golf Course. 

Tuesday, May 26

Friday, May 29

Tuesday, May 26

Friday, May 29

 2.  Lake Park at the fee station. There did not seem to be as much difference here until we looked in detail at the level of the signs sticking out of the water.

Tuesday, May 26

Friday, May 29

Tuesday, May 26

Friday, May 29

We talked briefly to the park ranger, who was putting up more barriers.  He told us that after the flood of 2007, which was less severe than this year, the park did not reopen until Labor Day.  He thinks it will be at least Labor Day this year before the park can reopen. 

3.  First hole of Lake Park Disc Golf Course.  The wire cage on the first hole is now just barely sticking above the water.

Tuesday, May 26

Friday, May 29

4.  North Mill Street  This was coned off.  We could not even get close enough to see the water. 

5.  Copperas Branch Park East.  The road that goes past the trail head was barricaded, but we parked and walked to the barricade.  The new parking lot at the trail head where we had parked on Tuesday is now completely under water.

Friday, May 29

Will Lewisville Lake continue to rise?  Will it get to 537'?  Probably.  Runoff continues to go into the lake and more rain is predicted for tonight.  If that were not enough, Lake Ray Roberts, which is currently at 644.19', is expected to go over its spillway (645.5') for the first time ever sometime before the end of the weekend.  That means uncontrolled release of more water into Lewisville Lake.

In case inquiring minds want to know and since the Frog asked...I know we are well above 537', but how much further?  The only topo map I have of our neighborhood puts us somewhere between 558' and 591'.   GPS's are notoriously poor at determining elevation, but my gps fluctuates between 560' and 570' when lying here on the den floor.   That would seem to put us at least 20' and probably more like 30' above the flow easement of the lake. 

Update:   Lewisville Lake continues to creep higher.  As of the 8:30 pm report, it is now at 535.93'.  It will be interesting to see what it does in the next few days.  Elevation of Lewisville Lake is at this site.  The summary of all of the lake levels is at this site.