Authorities Monitor Lake Texoma As Water Crosses Spillway

Saturday, July 7th 2007, 9:54 pm

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Authorities continue to monitor rising water levels at Lake Texoma along the border between Oklahoma and Texas, where water topped a concrete spillway designed to carry excess water to the nearby Red River.

Water levels stood at slightly more than 640 feet Saturday, slightly higher than a 640-foot-high concrete spillway that allows excess water to drain from the lake. Video images of the spillway showed water flowing over it into an earthen channel.

The lake, with a normal level of 619 feet, is expected to crest about six inches higher than the spillway on Monday, when up to 3,000 cubic feet of water a second will be diverted into the Red River.

The Corps said there is no danger to an earthen dam near the spillway that stands 30 feet higher at 670 feet.