For residents with homes along Swan Lake, the rising flow of Swan Creek affected the lake level and covered yards. The spring rains often cause residents to rethink how to find ways to control water flow during floods.
Pictured above, Swan Creek crested the evening of April 3, 2023 and threatened homes. The mouth of Swan Creek feeds Swan Lake in Cheshire Township.
By Gari Voss
“If the Lord’s willing and the creek don’t rise” is a familiar phrase spoken by rural residents in Allegan County. Each spring, residents in municipalities and townships across western Michigan wonder if the need will arise to maneuver around rising water because the drainage systems are unable to carry away the deluge. As March moved into April 2023, the extra precipitation closed street and roads and even carried away sections of bridges. For those who maintain property on lakes across Allegan County, the reality of torrents of rain brought the hope that the precipitation would stop so the water would recede before doing damage to crawl spaces and flooring.
The Allegan County Drain Commission often receives questions regarding how to minimize high water levels in the spring and the low lake levels in the summer.