Flows increased at Burrinjuck

3 December 2010

State Water increased flows from Burrinjuck Dam to account for higher inflows from heavy rainfall overnight.

Inflows peaked at a rate of 183,000ML/day in the early hours of the morning and have since reduced.

State Water Acting Water Delivery Manager Scott Barber said outflows from the dam also peaked early this morning and have since declined.

“We were releasing at a rate of 115,000ML/day at 6am during the peak inflows but have since reduced that rate to 90,000ML/day,” Mr Barber said.

“The rain overnight has been quite intense, at one stage there was 44mm over two hours.”

The dam is currently at 106% capacity.

The intense rainfall caused a number of land slippages near the dam, but has not affected the structural integrity.

“Our teams are checking the area hourly but it is a naturally occurring event away from where the water is being released so we are confident it will not affect operations.”

Mr Barber cautioned the public to stay away from the area.

“The slippages caused damage to one of the buildings and blocked off the road so we are asking people to stay away from the area for their own safety.”

The storage level will be monitored throughout the day and flows may be altered accordingly.

For information on flood warnings, please contact the State Emergency Service on 132 500 or visit the website www.ses.nsw.gov.au.

-ENDS-
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