Posted on: November 1, 2019 | Water Levels
Flows out of Lac Seul and Lake of the Woods and along the Winnipeg Rivers are exceptionally high and will remain so until Freeze-up.
Potentially dangerous river conditions exist along the Winnipeg River.
Rainfall in September and early October was remarkably high, setting new records for this period in many areas of the basin. The LWCB has rapidly increased outflow from both Lake of the Woods and Lac Seul in recent weeks in response. Outflows will remain high until freezeup.
The current level of Lake of the Woods is 323.39 m (1061 ft), which is greater than 95th percentile level for this time of year. The level of Lake of the Woods was stable over the past week and is expected remain stable over the next week. Lake of the Woods Dams were fully opened on October 10th and outflow is approximately 1200 m³/s. Note that the daily outflow varies slightly as wind events change the headpond level of the outflow structures.
The current level of Lac Seul is 356.58 m (1169.9 ft), a 75th percentile level for this time of year. The average lake level was stable over the past week and is expected to decrease by 1-3 cm (1 in) over the next week. Lac Seul authorized outflow is 550 m³/s.
Forecasts provided by Manitoba Hydro on Thursday, October 31 for river level change over the next 7 days are as follows:
Nutimik Lake: decline of 0.15 m (0.5 ft)
Dorothy Lake: decline of 0.12 m (0.4 ft)
Margaret/ Eleanor Lake: decline of 0.12 m (0.4 ft)
Sylvia Lake: decline of 0.07 m (0.2 ft)