08-18-05 (4:00 p.m.)
Scalping operations continue from the Brazos River into Ft. Phantom, however 3 of the large electric pumps are out of order. Flow continues from the Brazos, but unfortunately they are not scalping the maximum amount into the lake due to the electric pumps and the lake level are creeping up. Lake is up apprx. 1.5 feet and apprx. 3 feet below the spillway according to the Lake Patrol.

Blue cats are biting in the outer fringes of the the water discharge area according to lake personnel.

How many pumps are actually working?

I'm not sure how many there are (pumps for scalping), but I do know that last weeks rain brought 500 million gallons of scalping into the lake.

Abilene water officials say they expect to get more than a billion gallons this time around.

charlie do you know if oak creek
caught any water?

randy

Shows to have caught about 6-7 feet according to USGS. It's about 18.24' low right now. Looks like it might catch a little more, but that would be minimal.

Steven, as I understand it, there are two smaller pumps working. Now, what smaller is in gph, don't know that one. A fishing buddy that is a tech at the water plant there once told me that if there was enough flow in the river that the city could raise the level of the lake a foot per day. My WAG is that they are probably only pumping at about 25% of the capability if the three larger pumps were helping out. My peeve with the city of Abilene is that they are more reactive than proactive in situations like this.

My bet is they burned up the pumps back during the rains in February if not last Thanksgiving. Also during all the years of drought, they never had time to shred the creek bottoms to keep the growth down. just once or twice a year would have done it. After the July 5, 2003 flood, they got sued by the residents along the creeks because the growth in the creeks restricted flow and caused the water back up and flood the homes near the creeks. After that, the city imposed a monthly run-off fee to every home and business to pay for cleaning out the overgrowth and maintain the creek bottoms and tacked it on our water bill along with a an additional surcharge for OH Ivie water.

rtrull, Oak creek is up just under 7' and is now 18.24' down.

Thanks for the information and some recent history. I've been driving around in Abilene on and off for a few months (work-related) and further east along I-20. Sure is nice to see lots of greenery, running water and hills.

what is the word on lake Abilene and Kirby. i know that the both lakes are at full pool but is there any flooding that occured?

what is the word on lake Abilene and Kirby. i know that the both lakes are at full pool but is there any flooding that occured?

No flooding on Kirby, I don't think it made it back to the spillway. I'd have to check with RangerGuy. I think Lake Abilene is showing about 3' low.

Steven, e-mail me a day or so before you'll be in town and maybe we could meet for a glass of tea or something. I'll be in Lubbock late Tuesday afternoon and Wednesdy, but pretty well committed all day Wednesday.

I'll keep that in mind. I think I'm going to be in Amarillo next Wednesday. I've gone from just working in Lubbock to all over the place.

Yep, know what you mean ... As of mid March, I took Ops Management on in Central TX in addition to West TX. I now have from Amarillo to Bryan/College Sta.

One thing to keep in mind about pumping out of the Brazos, when WTU was doing well they didn't charge for the electricity for the pumps to put water into the lake. Since the plans for the local plant to shut down were made known, they started charging for the power to run the pumps. I believe the city got a nice bill that they weren't expecting from WTU/AEP/??? I can't remember the amount of the bill but it was SHOCKINGLY HIGH!! I guess it takes quite a bit of power to run those pumps at full tilt 24 hrs a day.

I don't have any connections with the city, but I would guess economics are playing a role in how much they pump into the lake these days. In the past it wasn't a real consideration.

Good point, Chris. Hadn't thought about that. Since the generator has been mothballed, not in WTU/AEP's interest to keep water in the lake. I'll run that by Ron and see what he says on the subject.

when are they going to dredge that mud hole out and let it really catch some water. My Grand Parents had a place on Yaw Road and one in Poverty Point. I grew up there fishing.

Just over the last 25 years, it has become such a sad place. Their old dock in the creek the is at the place they used to own on Yaw Road is only got room for 1-2 foot of water now. It used to have 7-8 foot of water under it.