Three Misner Dam planks removed

The water level in Silver Lake had dropped about 18 inches by noon on Monday.

Water is now only flowing through the spillway and not over the main part of the dam.

General Manager Eric D’Hondt of Norfolk County Public Works and Environmental Service Dept. told The Maple Leaf the water level “is going down quite nicely. It is not stirring things up at all.”

Engineer D’Hondt reported that from the bridge he could see “there is a lot of deterioration” of the concrete dam.

Robert M. Simon Construction of Waterford had removed three gate planks by presstime, the first on December 28, then on Dec. 30 and at noon on January 4. The planks are each 4 inches wide by 8 inches high with a set of two side-by-side.

General Manager D’Hondt asks that citizens stay off Silver Lake ice. As the water is drained from the lake a vacuum is created between the ice and the lowered water level that makes the ice surface less able to support a person’s body weight. As a precautionary measure he has alerted fire departments to be aware of this condition. - Wednesday, January 6, 2010