Recent storms have filled up reservoirs across the drought-stricken Bay Area and California, but that may be a cause for concern with more wet weather on the way.
As NBC Bay Area Meteorologist Kari Hall points out, a reservoir at 100% capacity now means the rain in the forecast will have nowhere to go except downstream.
"We are possibly going to see too much of a good thing," Hall said. "The problem is too much, too fast. The smaller reservoirs, like Uvas Reservoir, overtopped its banks over the weekend. You're losing valuable water because it didn't have time to really store it properly."
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Thanks to the recent rain, Uvas Reservoir in the South Bay is now more than 100% full, resulting in water rushing down the spillway. Compare that to last year when the reservoir was less than half full.
The Santa Clara Valley Water District said recent storms provided a boost to nearly all local reservoirs, but the rain needs to keep falling in order to make a long-term dent in the drought.
"It's really important for us to see the reservoirs across the state, especially in Northern California, fill up from these rainstorms," Valley Water spokesperson Matt Keller said. "And then also that snowpack is also very important for us because all of that runoff in the spring will fill up those reservoirs as well."
Valley Water said it will closely monitor reservoirs and other waterways during the upcoming storms. It suggests residents sign up for emergency alerts and check to see if they live in a flood zone.
