Finally, we get the first good news about the Boise River in over 4 months. The Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are decreasing flows from Lucky Peak Dam by 1,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) today (6/14/17).  That will bring the river very close to below flood stage for the first time since the first part of March.    That's right, flows in the city of Boise will decrease to about 7,250 cfs by this afternoon. That's the lowest flow for the Boise River since March...which means flood waters around the valley will finally begin to recede. Which means there is still a glimmer of hope that we could see some sort of recreation available to us this summer either in the form of floating or a little white water park action.

The decrease is happening because the snow pack in the Boise basin is being depleted, and the current inflow forecast predicts that there is plenty of space available in the reservoir system to store the remaining snow runoff.
A flow rate of 7,000 cfs is considered flood-stage level at the Glenwood Bridge gauge on the Boise River. The flow rate of 7,250 cfs would be the lowest level on the Boise River since early March. The bureau is hoping to lower flows to below flood stage for the first time since February, by some time next week...Unfortunately we still have to see a decrease of over 5000cfs before we can even think about floating the river this year....so don't count on it happening anytime soon.

Even though this is good news for people who live along the river, residents of flood-prone areas are still encouraged to remain informed of changing river and weather conditions on the National Weather Service, Boise Office website at http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/boi/.

The site offers flow data, weather forecasts, and flood alerts. Follow flood-response instructions issued by your local emergency management agency http://www.adacounty.id.gov/flood, and tune-in to Mix 106 and local television news stations. Ada County residents can sign up for CodeRED emergency alerts at https://public.coderedweb.com/cne/en-US/BF01DC4DD213, or download the CodeRED mobile app from your mobile device’s app store.

For real-time Boise River flows at Reclamation facilities in the Pacific Northwest Region, visit http://www.usbr.gov/pn/hydromet/rtindex/boise.html.

 

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