Corps urges boaters to use caution on Okeechobee Waterway

Published May 26, 2017
A boat enters the chamber at the W.P. Franklin Lock & Dam near Fort Myers, Fla. in October, 2016 while traveling on the Okeechobee Waterway.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District is responsible for operations and maintenance of the 154-mile long waterway that connects the Gulf of Mexico with the Atlantic Ocean through the Caloosahatchee River, Lake Okeechobee, and the St. Lucie Canal.

A boat enters the chamber at the W.P. Franklin Lock & Dam near Fort Myers, Fla. in October, 2016 while traveling on the Okeechobee Waterway. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District is responsible for operations and maintenance of the 154-mile long waterway that connects the Gulf of Mexico with the Atlantic Ocean through the Caloosahatchee River, Lake Okeechobee, and the St. Lucie Canal.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District is advising boaters on Lake Okeechobee that the low water level is now creating hazardous navigation conditions. 

The Corps issued a Notice to Navigation on Thursday (May 25), advising commercial and recreational vessels to use extreme caution while traveling Okeechobee Waterway Routes 1 and 2 between Port Mayaca and Clewiston.  Route 1 goes directly across the lake, while Route 2 runs along the southern edge of the lake through Pahokee, Belle Glade, South Bay, and Clewiston. 

“We are asking boaters to be mindful of the shallow water and the potential for submerged objects when traveling through the area,” said Gary Russ, Chief of the Corps’ South Florida Operations Office in Clewiston. 

Today’s lake elevation is 11.09 feet, which means the navigational depth along Route 1 is estimated at 5 feet, while the depth on Route 2 is estimated at 3.2 feet. 

For more information on navigation notices concerning the Okeechobee Waterway, please visit the following website:  http://www.saj.usace.army.mil/Missions/CivilWorks/Navigation/NoticestoNavigation.aspx

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Contact
John Campbell
904-232-1004
john.h.campbell@usace.army.mil

Release no. 17-023