Lake Lanier Association Executive Director Joanna Cloud says boat docks on Lake Lanier are threatened by extremely high water levels.
Lake levels are rising rapidly today due to recent rains. The lake is at 1074.22 … and major inflows are currently running 13,270 cubic feet per second (cfs), with an outflow at Buford Dam [about] 600 cfs.Rising lake levels can cause serious dock problems. First, ramps can end up in the water, making it impossible to access docks or move them shoreward.If docks are not moved shoreward, their anchor poles can either be lifted off the bottom if there’s not enough slack in the lifting cables or they can slide out of the bottoms of their collars if the dock rises beyond the poles’ reach. Especially if winds pick up, anchor pole problems can result in docks being dislodged and blown away from their normal mooring sites, causing damage to themselves, adjacent docks, or nearby boats. Retrieving a runaway dock and re-attaching it to the shore can be a difficult, dangerous, and expensive operation. Make certain your shore cables are sound and secure.
Lake Lanier is four feet above full winter pool as of December 29, 2016, with much more rain in the forecast.
