Water at Cypress Lake has not breached dam, flash flood warning continues

BULLOCH COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) – The waters at Cypress Lake have not breached the dam as of Thursday morning, but officials in Bulloch County are still asking people that live in the area to be on alert as there is a flash flood warning until this afternoon.

That flash flood warning expires at 3:15 p.m.

If the dam were to breach, flash flooding could devastate several communities in the area, including the Cypress Lane Mobile Home Park and Dry Ranch Village.

A look inside the dam itself shows just how high the waters really are but the good news? The president of the company that built and maintains the dam says it doesn’t look like a breach will happen.

“I just inspected the dam, and everything looks great. There was a couple of minor rush outs in the back, but no concern of mine at this point. So we’re looking really great at this point and we’re happy that everything is steady,” said Louie Giossehueslewiesche, the president of Cypress Lake Inc.

It’s a welcome surprise, he says, considering the unprecedented amounts of water that are coming through the dam, even after Tropical Storm Debby has left the area. It all goes back to other dams upstream, like the Oglesby Pond, breaching.

“The water from the Tropical Storm, we probably could’ve handled. But the upstream dam breakage? We just flooded out,” said Giossehueslewiesche.

Bulloch County officials are asking people that live in the area to still keep any eye on their properties while the lake levels recede.

“I think everybody looks at the dam and can breathe a sigh of relief that we were able to handle that flood the way we did,” said Giossehueslewiesche.

WTOC will bring you the latest updates as the Flash Flood Warning continues.

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