LAKE ISABELLA, Calif. (KERO) — Operators at the Isabella Dam can once again allow the lake to reach full capacity after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers updated the dam’s risk level from "highest urgency" to "low urgency" following the completion of dam safety improvements.
The improvements included a new emergency spillway, raising the main and auxiliary dams by 16 feet, and improving the dam’s filtering and drainage systems.
The lake currently has more than 540,500 acre-feet of water, which is about 95 percent of its total capacity.
The project still has one phase left with the construction of a new U.S. Forest Service visitor center and a permanent army corps operations building. That phase is scheduled to be completed in 2025.
