No Impact to dams after spring rain event

​Last week, there were inquiries on how the dams were performing as the Tittabawassee River stage was elevated beyond normal. Given most of the construction remains in suspension, we are providing this update to better inform the public. 

In our October webinar, we provided an update on the construction status of each dam. While not at their final design capacity, each dam has the capacity to safely pass at least a 200-year event, with greater capacity at Secord and Smallwood having their auxiliary spillways completed. In addition, significant durability improvements were completed on all four dams, so while not at their final design condition, dam safety has been significantly improved compared to what existed in 2020.

After the recent rain event, engineers inspected all four dams, and they remain in good condition and performed as expected. The recent high water levels have subsided and the river and lakes are returning to their regular operating levels.

Rain and flood events will still occur even once construction on the dams is completed. Each dam is designed not to control flooding, but to maintain the legal lake levels. They are being constructed to reduce the risk of failure during high storm events. Dam safety monitoring is significantly improved and occurs on a near-real-time frequency. The dams are monitored for dam safety, lake level, river level, and include live video monitoring. Plus, dam safety engineers and technicians visit frequently to visually monitor the dams for change.

Our Operations Team has Emergency Action Plans in place and is part of the Emergency Action Protocol to communicate status updates to the County Emergency Action teams.
FTLF encourages property owners to use the counties’ emergency management services to receive information related to storms:

• GLAWIN COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: https://gladwincounty-mi.gov/departments/emergency-management/
• MIDLAND COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: https://midlandcountymi.gov/alerts-information