Lake homes at risk

Residences around Lake Conway in Faulkner County and Lake Atkins in Pope County are at risk for flooding, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission announced Wednesday.

On Wednesday, high water from the Arkansas River pushed water up Palarm Creek and back over the spillway at Lake Conway dam.

An event of this circumstance and magnitude has never occurred on Lake Conway, so it is unclear exactly how this backflow from the Arkansas River will impact the water level of Lake Conway. Additional rain in the forecast is expected to keep the Arkansas River very high for an extended period of time, increasing the flood risk for Lake Conway.

Before the river’s rise, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission conducted a one-foot drawdown of Lake Conway to provide additional flood water storage. Releasing water from Lake Conway will be impossible until the water level subsides.

These factors increase the risk of flooding to residences around Lake Conway. The Game and Fish Commission recommends anyone that has experienced flooding around Lake Conway in the last 10 years to protect themselves and their property from flood damage.

As the Arkansas River continues to rise to record levels at Arthur V. Ormond Lock and Dam, all residents around Lake Atkins in Pope County could experience flooding from the lake if conditions worsen.

Sections of Arkansas 105 on the south side of the lake already have been closed due to flooding. The Lake Atkins spillway flows into Horsehead Branch, which connects to the Arkansas River roughly 3 miles downstream. As the Arkansas River rises, it can flow backward up Horsehead Branch, preventing water from exiting the lake. If the Arkansas River at the Morrilton gauge exceeds 42 feet, Horsehead Branch could flow backward over the spillway and into the lake. Combined with the forecast for up to 2 inches of rainfall, this could lead to flooding around the lake, particularly the North Shore Drive area.