Record release at Douglas Dam as TVA works to prevent more flooding

DANDRIDGE, Tenn. (WATE) — A record amount of water is rushing through the power turbines and spillways of Douglas Dam. Normally at this time of year, the dam would be drawn down to get ready for the wet winter season, but Helene changes all of those plans for TVA and Douglas Dam is at full pool.

“We’re releasing approximately 60,000 cubic feet per second,” said Darrell Guinn, TVA regional management director. “That’s the most we’ve ever released from there.”

“All that water is kind of flowing through the system, so it’s going to be on its way here through Knoxville and eventually through the entire Tennessee River system.”

People gathered at the dam’s overlook center were awestruck as all of the spillways were open.

“I’ve never seen a dam fully opened before, so them able to regulate how high that water is over there, so it doesn’t overtake the dam is very impressive,” said Mark Erickson.

“It’s unbelievable. I’ve lived here 40 years of my 60 years and I’ve never seen nothing like this,” said Lloyd Loveday. “Usually, I’ve seen two or three [spillways] open, but I’ve never seen all of them.”

The release of water for the TVA system is monitored in Knoxville at the River Forecast Center where technicians have been working overtime since Friday.

“It’s a puzzle that we put together on a daily basis to manage these reservoirs and release the amounts that we need to minimize any kind of flooding impacts throughout the system,” said Guinn.

TVA said Douglas Dam has held well despite the torrential amount of rain that drenched western North Carolina and East Tennessee as rivers and small streams suddenly became raging rivers from Helene.

TVA said water levels in some reservoirs reached their highest historic levels, including the Pigeon River in Newport. Guinn said he had never seen Douglas Dam like this before.

“There’s a lot of water coming into it still today and so we’re we’re going to be continuing to monitor that and manage that reservoir,” said Guinn.

The TVA shares current lake levels on its website at tva.com . Elevated releases are expected to continue over the next several days to recover flood storage if needed, particularly in areas like the Douglas watershed. In addition, the Tailwater Campground at Douglas is closed due to storm damage.

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