Lake Shasta three-quarters full. Confidence builds that reservoir will fill up this year

A series of soakers that has drenched areas north of Redding has pushed Lake Shasta close to the point where officials will start increasing releases from the dam.

Shasta Dam has received more than 13 inches of rain in January, and nearly 10 inches of that has come in the last week, said Don Bader, area manager of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

The water level in the lake has shot up 12 feet in just over a week, bringing the state’s largest reservoir to just under 10 feet from where officials will start increasing flows from the dam, Bader said.

“Army Corps of Engineers has a flood (operations) curve for Shasta, and it requires us to provide enough space in the reservoir through the winter months because of the threat of numerous storms (still to come), Bader said Wednesday.

Bader said his dam operations group called him Tuesday to tell him water flowing into the lake from recent rains is high and is expected to stay high into next week, “and they are projecting we are going to reach that threshold (to release water) within about a week”

But don’t expect the higher releases to cause flooding and force the closure of areas like Park Marina Drive, which hugs the Sacramento River in the city of Redding.

Bader said flows coming out of the dam right now are at 5,000 cubic feet.

“We would probably go up to 10,000 (cubic feet). Nobody will even notice,” Bader said. “We have to get to about 30,000 (cubic feet) to start seeing Park Marina get involved.”

As of Tuesday, Lake Shasta was at 119% of the historical average and at 76% full and is only 40 feet from the top. The lake is 40 feet higher than it was a year ago, Bader said.

Meanwhile, Trinity Lake was 58% full as of Tuesday and at 92% of the historical average. Trinity's water level has gone up 13 feet since Jan. 1.

The last time the bureau had to start increasing flows from Shasta Dam to make room in the lake was 2019.

“In January and February, we were doing flood operations and it dried up completely and we got right into that three-year drought," Bader said.

Plentiful rain from last year and the wet winter the region is having this year has taken the state out of the drought, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System.

There should be a break from the rain Thursday, before more precipitation hits the area Friday and Saturday, the National Weather Service said.

Sunday will be mostly dry with highs approaching 70 degrees in Redding.

David Benda covers business, development and anything else that comes up for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly "Buzz on the Street" column. He’s part of a team of dedicated reporters that investigate wrongdoing, cover breaking news and tell other stories about your community. Reach him on Twitter @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 1-530-338-8323. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Lake Shasta is three-quarters full. Will dam releases start soon?