Moccasin Dam Again Operational Following 2018 Atmospheric River

Moccasin, CA — An estimated $22-million in emergency repairs have been made to the Moccasin Dam in Tuolumne County following a torrential storm in March of last year.

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission reports that the dam returned to full capacity late last week, and the move will help improve the water reliability for the agency’s 2.7-million customers.

On March 22 of 2018, a surge of water and debris went down several creeks and threatened to overtop the Moccasin Dam. It also overwhelmed the Moccasin Creek Diversion Dam upstream from the reservoir. Crews took quick action and lowered the water. However, significant damage was located after the storm, including impacts to a crucial outlet, and culverts, and erosion at the toe and abutments to the diversion dam.

SFPUC General Manager, Harlan Kelly, says, “Since last year’s extreme weather event at the dam, we pursued a top-to-bottom safety review of the facilities, and we have made interim repairs and improvements to enhance the safety of this important facility while we continue to develop plans for long term improvements.”

Full capacity of the dam was restored this past Thursday. Additional improvements will be planned and executed over the next 5-10 years.