By David Kenney | February 14, 2020 at 9:01 PM CST – Updated February 14 at 9:07 PM
RANKIN COUNTY, Miss. (WLBT) – Efforts are underway at the Ross Barnett Reservoir to keep flooding to a minimum downstream, and to allow extra time for residents to get to higher ground.
John Sigman manager of the Pearl River Water Supply District had a phone conference with the National Weather Service and the Army Corp of Engineers Friday.
They said that areas north of the main lake have crested and were beginning to fall and that is good news.
There is more water still headed to the Reservoir.
Officials here will hold back as much water as they can until that point.
The crest now expected Sunday morning.
They are holding their outflow right now at 65,000 cubic feet per second and will hold there for 48 hours, giving people time to get to higher ground downstream.
The question now is how long is that water going to hang around.
John Sigman General Manager of the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District said, “We’re filling the lake up the last 24 hours we increased the lake level by a foot that amount of water would cover 30,000 football fields a foot deep that’s a lot of water were holding it back. We’ll let it out next week when the river level is lower and there won’t be quite so damaging to people.”
Sigman also said that the National Weather Service is only expecting an inch of rain next week.
At this time, they don’t expect that to increase the crest, but it is something they will have to watch very carefully.
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