Controlling flood waters at Jordan Lake

Jordan Lake is 13 feet above its normal level after downpours from Tropical Storm Chantal. As areas are drying out and preparing for another bout of rainfall this week, the question is, how much more can we take? WRAL speaks with officials about their plans to relieve some stress in the area.
Posted 7/8/2025, 9:02:21 PM Updated 7/9/2025, 12:40:52 AM

MURDER CHARGES. THE 2 MEN FACE

THAT CASE IS SET TO GO TO TRIAL

SOMETIME NEXT YEAR. ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU, BRIAN. RIGHT NOW AT

6 O'CLOCK OFFICIALS ACROSS OUR

AREA ARE CLOSELY MONITORING

RIVER AND LAKE LEVELS. DAYS

AFTER HISTORIC FLOODING CAUSED

BY SEAN TOWLE. IN FACT, BOTH

JORDAN LAKE AND FALLS LAKE ARE

ALREADY AT ELEVATED LEVELS AND

STILL RISING WITH EVEN MORE

RAIN ON THE WAY. IT'S WHY THE

ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS WILL

BEGIN LOWERING THEM BEGINNING

TOMORROW.

>> WRAL SEAN GALLAGHER IS

JOINING US LIVE AT JORDAN LAKE

DAM. AND SEAN, THIS PROCESS

WILL TAKE WEEKS TO GET THINGS

BACK TO NORMAL STAGE AND TO

TRY TO AVOID MORE FLOODING FOR

THESE COMMUNITIES.

>> YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT, LENA.

BUT IT'S ALL REALLY BY DESIGN.

YOU SEE THEY LET JORDAN LAKE

FILL UP WITH THAT RAIN SO THAT

THERE WON'T BE FLOODING

DOWNSTREAM. BUT LIKE YOU SAID,

STARTING TOMORROW, THE ARMY

CORPS OF ENGINEERS IS GOING TO

OPEN UP THIS DAM AND LET OUT AT

ITS PEAK ABOUT 10,000 CUBIC

FEET OF WATER. IF YOU'RE ASKING

YOURSELF, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

IT'S 75,000 GALLONS OF WATER

THAT WILL BE SHOOTING OUT OF

HERE PER SECOND. BUT ALL OF

THIS PROVING JORDAN LAKES

FUNCTIONALITY IS.

I EVEN 2 DAYS AFTER SEAN TALL

DUMPED RAIN HERE ABOUT WHERE

THAT RED SIGN IS ABOUT THE END

OF YOUR PARKING AREA. HE JORDAN

LAKE CONTINUES TO RISE. THE

CANOE LAUNCH. CHIEF DEPUTY

STEVE MAYNOR SHOWED ME

CONTINUES. CREEPING UP OVER THE

PARKING LOT LINES.

>> BUT IT'S NOT THE WATER.

THAT'S A PROBLEM.

>> WITH THE WATER LEVELS OF THE

DEBRIS IS A CONCERN. I'VE NEVER

SEEN

THE DEBRIS.

>> IN THE LOWS THAT WE'VE SEEN

COMING ACROSS THE LAKE. THIS

TIME. IT'S A LOT OF THIS DEBRIS

MIGHT BE THE PROBLEM, BUT IT

SHOWS HOW AFFECTIVE JORDAN LAKE

CAN BE.

>> JORDAN LAKE WITH DESIGNED

TO PROTECT COMMUNITIES

DOWNSTREAM AND TO FAYETTEVILLE

LILLINGTON AND OWN FATHER DOWN

THE STREAM TOWARDS THE COAST,

JORDAN LAKE AND IT'S TAMMER

BUILT FOR LEVELS TO RISE TO

NEARLY 240 FEET. IT GOT UP TO

ABOUT 2.29. AFTER THIS STORM

DAMPEN THE LAKER ACTING EXACTLY

AS THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO. TO

PREVENT MORE FLOODING

DOWNSTREAM DATA MADDUX WITH

THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS

SAYS THE JORDAN LAKE DAM CUT

ITS USUAL WATER RELEASED BY

MORE THAN HALF. WE CAN HOLD

BACK

FLOODWATERS AND

>> REDUCE THE RISK OF FLOODING

DOWNSTREAM, WHICH IS EXACTLY

WHAT WE DID THIS TIME. BUT THE

BENEFITS DOWNSTREAM AREN'T

AFFECTING THOSE UP IT. WE ARE

REALLY ONLY FLOODING OURSELVES

BY HOLDING THIS WATER BACK.

BUT NOW IT'S TIME TO DO A

CONTROLLED RELEASE OF THAT

WATER. TENS OF MILLIONS OF

GALLONS AN HOUR. IT'S AN

ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF WATER, BUT

THE RIVER AND THE CHANNEL AND

WHAT'S BELOW US CAN HANDLE IT.

AND EVEN AS THE LAKE LEVELS

DROP. THIS IS THE NEXT BIG

HURDLE. ALL OF THIS DEBRIS IS

ALONG THE SHORES AND ALSO ALL

THE WAY OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF

THE LAKE AS WELL. MADDUX TELLS

ME SHE WANTS PEOPLE TO BE EXTRA

CAUTIOUS. IF THEY DO HAVE TO

GET OUT ON THE LAKE THAT ALL

OF THIS DEBRIS THAT'S OUT THERE

CAN BE DEVASTATING TO

WATERCRAFT. SO IF YOU DO PLAN

ON GETTING OUT ON JORDAN LAKE,

MAKE SURE YOUR EXTRA CAREFUL.

© WRAL