Army Corps of Engineers adjusts lake operations amid health concerns

Published March 19, 2020

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Pacific Division has announced changes to lake operations in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico amid health concerns related to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Effective today, South Pacific Division will take measures across the region to reduce risk to guests, volunteers and personnel.

Changes include:

  • All USACE sponsored events, tournaments, volunteer activities and public meetings are canceled until further notice.
  • Special event activity permits will not be issued; those permits that have already been granted will be considered for revocation based on the Center for Disease Control’s guidelines (CDC.gov).
  • Visitor centers and lake offices are closed to the public until further notice.
  • USACE campgrounds that are currently open will honor active reservations through Friday, March 20th. Any individuals with reservations on or before March 20th will be able to camp for the entirety of their reservation. First-come, first-serve campsites will not be available after Saturday, March 21st. Reservations scheduled after April 3rd are cancelled. Refunds will be provided through Recreation One-Stop (1-877-444-6777 or www.recreation.gov). 
  • Campers with reservations must have printed passes to campgrounds.
  • Campgrounds that are currently closed will not reopen until further notice.
  • Day use facilities, such as group shelters, are subject to evolving conditions and may not be available. Please call the local project for the latest information.
  • Corps of Engineers personnel will stop all site visits or inspections for shoreline management activities until further notice.
  • The Bay Model located in Sausalito is closed until further notice.

Additional closures may be made by district offices based on local health and safety concerns. Visit the District websites for Albuquerque (www.spa.usace.army.mil), Los Angeles (www.spl.usace.army.mil), Sacramento (www.spk.usace.army.mil), and San Francisco (www.spn.usace.army.mil) for the latest information in your area or call the local lake office for current conditions before traveling to a recreation site.

Officials urge visitors to follow the CDC’s guidelines regarding social distancing and remain diligent. CDC guidelines and more information can be found at www.coronavirus.org. For more information from USACE, please visit www.spd.usace.army.mil/Coronavirus.

Those visitors within the San Francisco Bay Area: the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara; additionally, the City of Berkeley, who has their own health department, and Santa Cruz County, have Shelter-in-Place mandates until April 7. Please visit www.acgov.org, www.contracosta.ca.gov, www.sccgov.org, www.sf.gov, www.smcgov.org, www.marincounty.org, www.sonomacounty.ca.gov, www.co.santa-cruz.ca.us, www.cityofberkeley.info for more information.

The South Pacific Division delivers vital engineering solutions throughout the Pacific Southwest, in collaboration with our partners, to secure our Nation, energize our economy and reduce risk from disaster.


 


Contact
Mike Petersen
415-503-6514
spd-pao@usace.army.mil
450 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco, CA 94102
or
Edward Coffey
415-503-6517
spd-pao@usace.army.mil
450 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco, CA 94102

Release no. 20-023