News

GRDA notifying public of potential for elevated lake levels at Grand, Hudson

Apr 03, 2025

The Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA) is monitoring the potential for elevated lake levels at Grand Lake and Lake Hudson in response to National Weather Service forecasts predicting heavy rainfall in the Arkansas River System over the next several days.

Grand Lake and Lake Hudson are part of the Greater Arkansas River flood control system. During flood events, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) manages releases as required by Section 7 of the Flood Control Act of 1944.

The Grand River joins the Arkansas River and Verdigris River at “Three Forks” in Muskogee, Oklahoma. During periods of heavy and widespread rainfall across the region, USACE will coordinate water releases between reservoirs that feed into the Arkansas River to minimize downstream flooding.

At times, releases from these upper reservoirs, located above the confluence of the Grand River, Verdigris River and Arkansas River may be staggered.

Additionally, rainfalls expected in the Kansas and Missouri portions of the Grand River System, forecasted for late in the week and over the weekend, may also increase flows into Grand and Hudson.

GRDA anticipates increased water levels will also facilitate its efforts to monitor recent improvements to the Robert S. Kerr Dam spillway, as requested by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

As the USACE coordinates this flood control event across the Arkansas and Grand River, GRDA will continue to provide updates on lake elevations and flood gate operations directed by USACE at Pensacola and Kerr Dams. Notices on floodgate operations will be posted on GRDA’s

Facebook page and www.grda.com.

More information on lake and river conditions can be found under the “Lake Levels” tab on grda.com, as well as the GRDA StormOps | River Operations site (http://stormops.grda.tech/riveroperations).