Drawdown gates at Deer Point Reservoir remain 100-percent open in anticipation of continued weather events that could cause water levels to rise markedly.
The gates were fully opened at 5 a.m. Monday morning in advance of a storm system that dropped up to seven inches of rainfall in the northern area of the Econfina watershed in Washington County. The reservoir level reached 4.5 feet-more than half a foot below normal-at 7 a.m. Wednesday. By Wednesday afternoon, the reservoir was slowly beginning to rise as a massive volume of water makes its way toward Deer Point from Econfina Creek, which is beginning to show signs of cresting.
Utilities officials intend to maintain the drawdown gates' fully open position, as the National Weather Service is predicting another rain event on Friday that could bring several more inches of water to the area. The reservoir level will be returned to normal once the weather threat has passed.
Highlights
Wildwood Road lane to close
Weather permitting, a lane of Wildwood Road just south of Beachwood Boulevard will be closed from Monday April 21 through Friday, April 25 to install drainage pipes under the roadway.
Extension Office reopens in permanent location
The UF/IFAS Bay County Cooperative Extension Office has relocated to its permanent facility at 2728 E. 14th St., Panama City, in the old Cedar Grove City Hall.
The office had been temporarily sited on McKenzie Avenue while crews completed a wind and flood retrofit at the Cedar Grove building.
The retrofit project, aimed at making the building better able to withstand severe weather, was funded via a $319,000 Disaster Recovery Community Development Block Grant from the state.
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RESTORE Web page available
To learn more about the RESTORE Act and how it will affect Bay County, please click the link below. The page has useful links, a RESTORE calendar and various documents available for download. A permanent link to the page is located on the right column of the county's homepage, under the "On the Horizon" section.
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