By CHARLES RICHARDS
eParisExtra.com
PAT MAYSE LAKE — Almost 6.5 inches of rain has fallen on Pat Mayse Lake this month, raising the lake level almost five feet above the conservation level of 451 feet above sea level.
More than 440 million gallons of water is leaving the lake each day through the north side of the reservoir on Farm Road 906 west of Powderly into Sanders Creek, which carries the water on to the Red River four miles away.
That generally sends fishermen swarming to the spot on the other side of FM 906, because fish fall through the escape valve as well.
At midnight Saturday, the water level was 455.9 feet above sea level, and water was leaving the lake at the rate of 681 feet per second.
That’s 5,000 gallons a second, 300,000 gallons a minute, more than 18 million gallons an hour, more than 440 million gallons a day.
The lake received 5.35 inches of rain in January, 1.74 inches in February, and 6.46 inches in March through Saturday — a total of 13.55 inches so far in 2012.
The rains brought the lake level above 451 feet on Jan. 25, and the level has stayed above that level ever since.
The release valve keeps the lake level at a manageable level, although roads leading into some of the parks sometimes become unusable because the roads and boat ramps get under water.
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Charles Richards Charles Richards moved to Paris in 2004 after retiring from a 40-year career in journalism – the last 26 years as a news writer and sports writer with The Associated Press in Dallas and Washington, D.C. In mid-2004, The Paris News coaxed him out of retirement, and he began covering the police, court and regional beat for The Paris News. Then in early 2005, he was switched to coverage of a sharply divided Paris City Council. He was appointed by the City Council in 2006 to the 12-member City Charter Review Commission, which extensively rewrote the outmoded document. His writing awards include two first-place awards in statewide competition for feature writing. The most recent was his 2005 story on a Paris doctor’s startling use of leeches in a successful attempt to re-attach a man’s severed ear. Over his career, Richards’ interview subjects include Alabama Gov. George Wallace, President Bill Clinton, President George W. Bush, David Koresh, Arnold Palmer, Muhammad Ali and numerous other political and sports figures. He is an alumnus of Texas Tech, where he was editor of the school newspaper. He lives in Paris with his wife, Barbara, who is retired after 30 years as a teacher and high school counselor.
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