Cheboygan Dam Water Levels Rise, Officials Warn Residents To Prepare For Evacuation

CHEBOYGAN COUNTY, MI — Officials urged residents in part of Cheboygan County to prepare for possible evacuation as water levels at the Cheboygan Dam have reached the "ready" mark.

The request is for those living between the Cheboygan DNR Dam and Lake Huron in Cheboygan.

The ready mark means water is 12 inches below the top of the dam and that levels have risen three inches or more a day.

It is the first mark of the "ready, set, go" system.

"Set" is if water is six inches from the top and predicted to exceed the dam within two days. "Go" is if water is an inch from the top with a high probability of topping it.

"Go" means residents should follow evacuation orders.

Forecasters expect up to another 2 inches of rain early this week. Officials said the rainfall combined with melting snow from a record March threatens to overwhelm the dam.

Crews with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources have activated five pumps to divert water around the dam.

"All of the dam gates on the DNR-managed portion of the dam are fully open to handle this flow," Gaylord District supervisor for the DNR’s Parks and Recreation Division Richard Hill said. "The pumps add to the capacity. We are putting through as much water as we can."

On Friday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency and activated the State Emergency Operations Center.

Two thousand sandbags are in place to direct water flow with the possibility of adding more. A timber debris screen in front of the dam’s Gate 6 was removed to increase water flow.

As rain is expected to continue, Cheboygan County emergency managers encourage residents to sign up for alerts through Be Alert or to call 211 for information about preparedness and potential evacuation.