SUTTON, W.Va. — Most folks are probably looking forward to unwinding this weekend after a difficult week in West Virginia. Rain has dampened most outdoor plans for days, but with the return of sunshine a lot of folks may be considering a getaway. It’s advisable to call ahead first.
“Summer pool is 925 and we got up to 941.31,” said David Eskridge, Project Manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Sutton Lake. “It’s been really hectic here. Our phone system is out, our network is out, so it’s been a real chore to keep up with things.”
As of Friday, the lake level at Sutton was still above summer pool, but falling. Eskridge said at the height of this week’s rain all campgrounds and day use facilities within the project had to be closed with the exception of the Bee Run Campground which sits on top of a hill and the downstream areas.
“We reopened Bee Run day use area this (Thursday) morning,” Eskridge said. “We have some asphalt damage down toward the parking area at Bee Run, but it’s open where people can launch boats and go out on the lake.”
The Corps also stretched a boom across the upper end of the lake in hopes of catching as much debris as possible floating in the water. The Gerald R. Freeman Campground is closed but Eskridge expected it could reopen by the middle of next week after the lake returned to summer pool and repairs were completed. The Baker’s Run campground however may be closed for the foreseeable future.
“Over toward Baker’s Run Campground the county road washed out. There is something like a mile of it that just looks like a bomb went of,” Eskridge said. “As far as reopening Baker’s Run Campground it’s going to depend on when the Department of Highways is able to fix that road.”
At Summersville, the impact of three flooding events in a weeks time wasn’t nearly as traumatic.
“We have measured over six inches of rain that’s fallen here at the dam,” said Corps Project Manager Toby Wood. “All of our launch ramps are open and working, with the exception of the marina and I look for it to be useable tomorrow morning.”
Wood said he only had to shut down 21 campsites which were situated on a peninsula in the project area. Several parking lots and boat launch facilities were closed but have reopened.
“The lake is falling and conditions downstream are good so we can release the maximum we can from the dam and we have been for several days,” Wood said. “We’re looking to reset summer pool sometime on Friday.”