Abundance of rain causes dam to overflow

An abundance of rain last week boosted the lake level, causing water to flow over the dam. It was a welcome sight for Canyon Lakers, Lake Elsinore residents and EVMWD.

Canyon Lake can hold as much as 12,000 acre-feet of water or 3.9 billion gallons of water. The spillway elevation is 1381.76 feet above sea level. When the lake level exceeds that amount, water gushes over the spillway into the San Jacinto River channel and flows to Lake Elsinore.

Canyon Lake Reservoir is owned by EVMWD. It’s a critical part of the EVMWD water system and helps ensure EVMWD can provide reliable drinking water to its 133,000 customers across its 96-square-mile service area.

The lake is leased to approximately 4,800 members of the POA for recreational use. The POA manages the use of the lake for recreation. The lease amount paid by the members of the POA is about $25 each month or $300 annually.

The construction of the dam began in 1927 and was completed two years later.

While the dam’s original concrete structure remains in place, the configuration was altered in 1996 when EVMWD spent more than $9 million to improve its safety by widening and refurbishing the dam to withstand a 100-year flood event.