Today is May 14, 2023. It’s been 1,461 days.
Four years to the day. That’s how long Lake Dunlap residents have been waiting and working to restore their lake.
Four long years since the center gate of the old Lake Dunlap Dam broke free of its hinges May 14th, 2019. More than 693 million gallons of water drained out of the lake in a matter of hours. Video of the breach was captured and immediately went viral.
On the ground, residents were stunned to see what was once a lovely lake for watersports and fishing turn into a treacherous mud-filled river channel peppered with craggy stumps and debris.
There were tears. And there was anger. And then there was determination.
It’s been nearly three years since waterfront owners voted by over 90 percent in favor of creating a Water Control and Improvement District, which provided the mechanism to allow property owners to share the cost of the new dam among themselves. With an agreement with the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority in hand that ensured that hydroelectric revenues would offset nearly half the cost, the plan was complete. Voters approved the plan on Novenber 3, 2020, as well as the issuance of $40 million in bonds to finance the project, and not long after, the Texas Water Development Board agreed to provide the funds at a near zero interest rate.
Zachry Construction was selected as the general contractor, and work began to restore the dam on May 14, 2021, exactly two years to the day after it failed on May 14, 2019.
And here we are, now two more years later on another anniversary of the breach — and the work to replace the dam is nearly finished.
The dam is visibly a completely new and modern dam, and it’s clear to any observer that work on it is nearly finished.
While it’s not possible to know the exact date the water will be back with certainty, it is clear that it won’t be much longer.
The Lake Dunlap WCID reports that the dam should be complete by the end of July, 2023, and the water restored within about 3 weeks after that. This summer.
A good estimate for “water back,” the date that everyone living on Lake Dunlap wants to know, is that that day is likely to be within the next 90 days.
I can hardly wait. I’m counting those last days down ... and hoping luck falls our way!