Flows from Lake Okeechobee to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Estuaries will be increased beginning Friday, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
It cites rising water levels in the lake as the reason.
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"The lake has jumped three quarters of a foot since it hit its low for the year last week," Col. Jason Kirk, Jacksonville District Commander, said in a news release. "This increase in outflows, guided by the 2008 Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule, will help slow the rise in the lake and better position us for tropical conditions which may develop in the coming days."
The Corps says the lake is currently at 14.38 feet which it says is in the upper half of the Corps' preferred range of elevation.