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Wisconsin River Report June 11, 2004

Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company 2301 North Third Street Wausau, WI  54403 For more information contact Sam Morgan Phone: 715.848.2976, ex 301 Email: morgan@wvic.com

 

Steady Rains Boost River Flows

 

Four significant rainfall events during the first ten days of June have held the average flow of the Wisconsin River 50% to 100% above normal and kept the reservoir system near the full mark according to Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company (WVIC) of Wausau. Rainfall for the past week averaged 1.34 inches in the upper basin north of Tomahawk and 2.66 inches in the central basin between Tomahawk and Wisconsin Rapids. The heaviest rains were reported in the area from Wisconsin Rapids south to Portage. Wisconsin Rapids reported 3.08 inches of rain for the week and some areas in Adams, Juneau, and Columbia counties reported local amounts of five inches or more. Total precipitation for 2004 is running about four inches above normal in the northern basin and two inches above normal in the central basin.

The rains have kept the flow of the Wisconsin River well above normal. In the northern two-thirds of the basin the rains were not heavy enough to cause flooding problems. However, the latest batch of heavy rains in the south-central portion of the basin will push the Wisconsin River at Portage above flood stage over the coming weekend. When runoff from the recent rains reaches the lower river early next week the flow of the Wisconsin River at Muscoda is expected to crest just below flood stage.

All five of WVIC’s large reservoirs; Rainbow, Willow, Rice, Spirit, and Eau Pleine, remain at the full mark. With river flows well above normal, water levels in the five large reservoirs are expected to remain near full through late June even without any further rain. All but one of WVIC’s smaller natural-lake reservoirs are at their normal summer levels. The only exception is Twin Lakes near Phelps that is still 0.4 foot below the summer target level.

            Temperatures averaged close to the seasonal normal last week with weekly average temperatures of 62 degrees in the northern basin, 65 degrees in the central basin, and 72 degrees in the southern basin.

 

 

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