Oologah Lake Businesses Seeing Slow Down From Flooding

Businesses at Oologah Lake say their revenue is drying up after an unusually wet spring.

The water level is more than 22 feet above normal there, but despite the water level, the lake is still open for boating.

Marina owners say families don't realize they can still come out and get on the water, and that's hurting businesses around the lake.

"The high water has really killed our business, we're down 85 percent compared to what we usually are this time in terms of income and revenue," Redbud Marina Owner Michael Fawcett said.

Fawcett says because of flooding in Oklahoma, many people think Oologah Lake is closed for recreation.

"People are just assuming the worst, we have full access to our docks, the restaurant is open, and we're still kicking along," Fawcett said.

The lake is more than 22 feet above normal. Parking lots and other areas that were above the water line are now underwater.

The parking lot next to their docks is under 14 feet of water.

Fawcett says they've made makeshift ramps, so everyone can still get to their slips and they’ve launched dozens of boats onto the lake from the road.

"It's really hard, all of the marinas are feeling it, we're all suffering," Fawcett said.

The Army Corps of Engineers bumped up the release to more than 112,000 gallons of water per second at 11am today.

Then a couple hours later that was increased even more.

Too much water is coming into the lake and it's a problem Fawcett and other marina owners. Despite the high water, they want families to know they're still open for business.

"Right now we've got a private lake, and there's plenty of opportunity to come out and enjoy the water still," Fawcett said.

The beach and recreation area on the west side of the dam is also closed because of flooding.