Wednesday, June 25, 1997
High water causing, solving problems for area
residents
High water at Lake Leon in Eastland County is causing havoc
for about 100 homeowners, but folks who rely on Lake Stamford
for their water supply couldn't be happier.
The Leon River is pouring millions of gallons of water into
Lake Leon from its watershed after heavy recent rains. The same
thing is happening at Lake Stamford, but because the lake was
so low when the rains started, it has a long way to go before
people worry about it spilling over.
Gary Crew, Lake Leon patrolman for seven years, said that for
the first time since the lake filled in 1955, water is going over
the emergency spillway.
Crew said water is standing from a few inches to several feet
deep in lake dwellings, including the LaMancha store and living
quarters on the north side of the lake. Water is over Farm Road
2461 leading to LaMancha, he said.
The Staff community on the south side of Lake Leon was hit
the worst, Crew said, but added that residents there know to leave.
"If they haven't left, now they can't," Crew said.
The bridge over the lake near Staff has 4 feet of water covering
it and that stretch of Farm Road 2214 is closed.
Jones County
In Jones County, the red water of Paint Creek is flowing, the
lake is catching water and Stamford residents are a little less
worried about their water supply.
Thanks to the abundant rainfall Sunday and early Monday, from
3 to 4 inches, Lake Stamford has reported a .6 of a foot rise
from last Friday.
Both Paint Creek and Mule Creek, which flow directly into the
lake, have been reported as "flowing heavily."
According to City Manager Ken Roberson, the lake has risen
to 7-feet, 3- inches below the spillway. It had been almost 11
feet low.
Roberson said he expects the level to increase more as the
creeks continue to flow into the lake.
"We should have a good estimate in 24 to 48 hours,"
he said. "Both creeks are still really flowing and we are
taking measurements daily."
Before the rains, the city' sole water supply had dropped drastically
to about a two-year supply.
"This was the kind of rain we needed," Roberson said.
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Copyright ©1997,
Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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