Lake levels 20 feet higher than it should be

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    BARTOW County, GA (WGCL ) — In Bartow and Cherokee counties, Allatoona Lake is more than twenty feet higher than it should be.

It’s been nearly six decades since the levels have risen to this level during this time of year, and that is what the folks from the U.S. Army Corp Of Engineers are saying.

In fact, the water level is so high they’ve begun releasing water through its dam spillway.

“A neighbor called me and said, hey Don, I think I just saw your dock float by our window,” said Don Ball.

Ball lives along Allatoona Lake. His dock broke free of its moorings in the flooding.

“Clear across the lake I could see it,” Ball said.

He, among other neighbors, say it’s been a while since the water levels have reached these numbers.

“This is probably tied for the highest I’ve seen it,” Ball added.

As of Friday morning, the U.S. Army Corp Of Engineers said the levels were almost 23-feet above the guide curve.

“Really, there’s nothing you can do except make sure everything is on dry land,” said Ball.

And that Allatoona lake is expected to peak at 853 feet above sea level by March 1st.

“The water gets so high, you can’t get to your boat,” said Captain Page McEntyre, with Tow Boat U.S., “It’s enough to start damaging dock”

CBS46’s Melissa Stern spent the day out on the water with Tow Boat US.

They showed her where the water usually is, and how high the levels are right now.

“The water levels are so high, the ramps are not accessible,” added McEntyre.

The dam is currently generating around the clock to evacuate water.

“The dam was built pretty much to control flooding downstream,” McEntyre said.

In the past two weeks — inspectors have measured 14 inches of rain at the dam, and the Highway 92 bridge project has taken a hit because of the flooding.

While locals say the levels are more of an inconvenience more than anything else, they said it can become dangerous when more rain is on the way.

“It’s almost like, gee, I wonder how high the water is going to get this time,” said Ball.

The U.S. Army Corp Of Engineers said it often takes weeks before water levels go back to normal.

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