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California Drought: Massive Reservoir Goes Bone Dry Overnight
The Mountain Meadows reservoir in Northern California dried up completely in the blink of an eye, leaving thousands of dead fish -- and residents baffled.
Residents say people were fishing in the reservoir, also known as Walker Lake, just this past weekend. Then the entire lake drained, as if someone had unplugged a bathtub, in one night.
California is stuck in a drought of epic proportions, further compounded by years of sparse snowfall in the Sierra Nevadas that have left reservoirs across the state at record lows.
For resident Eddie Bauer, who has lived next to Walker Lake his whole life, the drained reservoir was a sight he had never seen before, the local CBS station reported.
Bauer was shocked because he, along with regional officials, thought the reservoir had had two weeks worth of water left. This would have given time for the Pacific Gas & Electric Company, who owns the rights to the water for a hydroelectric dam run on the reservoir, enough time to relocate the fish.
Instead, Bauer and other residents now see thousands of rotting dead fish baking in the sun where the reservoir used to be.
(more)
The Mountain Meadows reservoir in Northern California dried up completely in the blink of an eye, leaving thousands of dead fish -- and residents baffled.
Residents say people were fishing in the reservoir, also known as Walker Lake, just this past weekend. Then the entire lake drained, as if someone had unplugged a bathtub, in one night.
California is stuck in a drought of epic proportions, further compounded by years of sparse snowfall in the Sierra Nevadas that have left reservoirs across the state at record lows.
For resident Eddie Bauer, who has lived next to Walker Lake his whole life, the drained reservoir was a sight he had never seen before, the local CBS station reported.
Bauer was shocked because he, along with regional officials, thought the reservoir had had two weeks worth of water left. This would have given time for the Pacific Gas & Electric Company, who owns the rights to the water for a hydroelectric dam run on the reservoir, enough time to relocate the fish.
Instead, Bauer and other residents now see thousands of rotting dead fish baking in the sun where the reservoir used to be.
(more)