The Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Savannah is alerting area mariners to expect significantly higher and faster-moving water on the Savannah River, beginning around Thursday and likely peaking with a 10-foot high tide late Monday.
“With the continuing rains in the upper Savannah River basin, the (U.S. Army) Corps of Engineers began last week releasing water from the flood storage reservoirs at Hartwell, Richard Russell and J. Strom Thurmond lakes,” Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Mark Sawyer said Tuesday.
“When that happens, it usually takes about a week for us to feel the effects downstream in Savannah. That means river levels should be noticeably higher by Thursday and could be over the lip of the riverfront at high tide Monday,” Sawyer said.
A swifter-than-usual current also is expected, likely bringing debris from upstream.
“While we don’t expect commercial river traffic to be affected, we wanted to make sure smaller vessels were aware to mind mooring lines and watch for strong currents and floating debris if they venture into the river,” he said.
Corps of Engineers spokesman Billy Birdwell said River Street could get water “splashing up on the sidewalks at low points, possibly Thursday, more likely Monday.” Birdwell said he doesn’t expect water to threaten the storefronts that line River Street.
“They are located on an upward slope from the river and should be fine,” he said.
However, flooding along low-lying areas of U.S. 80 heading to Tybee Island is expected at high tides.
While releases from the lake storage pools are part of normal river management upstream, Birdwell said it has been decades since the water has been this high, prompting an operational release through the dam spillway gates.
“Before last week, we hadn’t opened the spillway gates at Hartwell for a release in 20 years,” he said.
“This is going to be a fast-moving river pushing out to sea,” he said. “It could get interesting around high tide Monday.”
Monday’s tide at the Tybee Lighthouse entrance is expected to crest close to 10 feet about 8:30 p.m.
At Hogan’s Marina on Turners Creek, Bubba Strickland said he and his staff were making sure their boaters were aware that navigating the Savannah River could get a little dicey in the next few days, especially for small boats.
Bull River Marina is one of the closest pleasure boating facilities to the Savannah River. There, manager Gary Hill is advising his mariners to stay clear of the river for the next week or so, especially after dark.
“I know we’re looking at increased tides and currents,” he said. “But I’m really most concerned about debris. That can be a problem in the Savannah River anytime, especially when visibility is low.
Birdwell said boaters can expect the river to run high for the next 15 to 45 days.
“And if we continue to get lots of rain upstream, it could take three months or longer.”
Ironically, the situation is the opposite of the drought water managers faced a year ago.
“Right now, we’re releasing water at the rate of 37,000 cubic feet per second,” Birdwell said. “This time last year, the flow was 3,800 cubic feet per second, all moving through the turbines.”