Officials Jostle Wyoming Reservoir Levels to Prepare for Runoff
CODY, Wyo. (AP) — Federal officials have lowered the water levels of the Buffalo Bill Reservoir in Wyoming to make room for expected heavy runoff in late May and June.
Warmer than expected temperatures and abundant snowpack weren't enough this past weekend to unleash flooding in the Shoshone River basin east of the reservoir, but officials say the real threat remains a few weeks away.
Mahonri Williams, chief of the Bureau of Reclamation's Resources Management Division in Wyoming, says officials had been reviewing the situation and might revise flows out of the reservoir.
The Bureau's website indicated the reservoir was at 52 percent of capacity on Friday. That level is only 86 percent of the reservoir's 25-year average this time of year.