The Michigan Department of Natural Resources will be monitoring the weather while a turbine at the Cheboygan dam is being repaired, following weeks of flooding in the northern Lower Peninsula that threatened the dam.
The electricity-generating turbine at a hydroelectric plant has helped prevent the Cheboygan Lock and Dam Complex from overflowing since April 17, when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Consumers Energy and contractors got it restarted.
The hydro plant shut down the turbine for maintenance on Tuesday, causing water levels at the dam to rise briefly before leveling off, according to the DNR.
As of 10 a.m., the water level on the Cheboygan River was 12.96 inches below the crest of the dam, according to the Michigan DNR’s daily measurements.
The Cheboygan dam’s hydroelectric plant is privately owned, while the dam’s lock and spillway are owned by the state. The two entities are working together to control the water levels.
It wasn’t known how long the turbine repairs would take, the DNR said Wednesday.
What’s being done to prevent more flooding
Two spillway gates at the Cheboygan dam’s hydroelectric plant are open to help control water flow, according to the DNR.
Once the turbine bearing is fixed, the mechanical and electrical systems will be tested before the plant returns to full operation, the DNR said in a statement Wednesday.
“I think we will continue to see things progress in a positive direction,” said Rich Hill, co-leader of the DNR Incident Management Team.
In the meantime, he’ll keep an eye on the weather. Significant rainfall would add more water to the watershed, which, in turn, would put more pressure on the dam.
It was inclement weather that threatened the dam earlier this month. Heavy rains and melting snow and ice from inland lakes enlarged rivers and other waterways feeding into the dam.
The water level reached within five inches of the top of the dam.
Federal, state and local agencies worked with the hydroelectric plant to get the turbines back online and moving water at the dam. All six spillway gates at the dam were removed while high-capacity pumps were used to move water around the structure and into the spillway.
Levels have remained stable at slightly over 12 inches below the top of the structure since then.
During the scare earlier this month, the state activated an emergency operations center and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency that now applies to 41 counties. Officials warned residents near the waterway they would be ordered to evacuate if the water level reached an inch below the dam’s top.
fdonnelly@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Cheboygan dam water levels being monitored as turbine gets repaired
Reporting by Francis X. Donnelly, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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