LOS ANGELES -- The reservoir elevation at Sepulveda Dam reached and exceeded 680 feet Dec. 24 and again Dec. 26.
The dam, owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Los Angeles District, is located at the headwaters of the Los Angeles River.
Rainstorms create reservoir impoundment behind the dam. When the elevation reaches 680 feet, USACE notifies the Los Angeles County Police Department, which then determines whether Burbank Boulevard needs to be closed to traffic.
As of Dec. 26, Burbank Boulevard remains closed to traffic until all rain events have passed.
SEPULVEDA DAM OPERATIONS DURING RAIN EVENTS
Sepulveda Dam’s reservoir collects local runoff from uncontrolled drainage areas upstream of the dam and reduces the peak discharge into the channelized portion of the Los Angeles River, so the downstream channel has the capacity to collect the local inflow from the San Fernando Valley.
USACE does extensive coordination with many partners to assist them in determining what safety measures to implement.
The dam has eight outlets, four of them gated. Because the other four passages have no gates, the dam is not intended to “shut off” the flow to the Los Angeles River. The “standby” position of the gated passages is wide open.
Flow passes through the dam without much reduction until the inflow is great enough for the reservoir elevation to rise. As the Los Angeles River channel downstream approaches its capacity, USACE reduces the discharge to provide relief to the river downstream.
Recreational facilities developed by the City of Los Angeles that are in the reservoir, such as parks and golf courses, are permissible because they are compatible with occasional inundation from reservoir impoundments.
Sepulveda Reservoir is intended to impound water, which is not the same as flooding. Flooding is when unplanned water causes damage to the man-made environment and its inhabitants.