Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) officials have raised the activation level of the District’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 2 due to high water levels at the G-90 Water Conservation Structure in Highlands County.
The G-90 structure is located on Lake June-in-Winter in Lake Placid. The lake received 11.26 inches of rain over the last three days, and the lake has reached its minimum flood level.
District staff are monitoring water levels around the clock. The water level in Lake June-in-Winter is slowly rising. The high-water conditions downstream of G-90 limit the amount of water that can be discharged from the lake. The District is carefully releasing water from Lake June-in-Winter to help minimize flooding around the lake while also limiting discharges that could affect potential downstream flooding.
Residents should stay alert for more information from Highlands County Emergency Management and be prepared to evacuate in case of possible flooding. The Covered Bridge community near Jack Creek or Josephine Creek could experience flooding.
The District is coordinating closely with Highlands County Emergency Management, the National Weather Service, the South Florida Water Management District, the State Dam Officer and the Florida Department of Emergency Management. District staff is closely monitoring conditions and will be performing inspections of the structure today.
The G-90 Water Conservation Structure, a reinforced-concrete gated spillway, regulates the surface water elevation of Lake June-in-Winter to ensure the environmental health, recreation use and the aesthetic value of the lake.
The EOC provides direction regarding District activities before, during and after an emergency weather event. The EOC also directs District field crews, responds to requests from the state EOC, and provides water resource updates to state and local emergency management agencies, the media and the public. The District EOC will expand to include additional emergency personnel as the situation demands. For the most updated information, please visit the District’s website at WaterMatters.org.