Water Levels Highest In Two Years

From Mount Dora to Cedar Key, residents are seeing the highest water levels in more than two years.

Tropical Storm Fay actually "dried out" St. Petersburg and Tampa, but the rural areas to the north saw some wetter-than-normal conditions during the month of August, said Southwest Florida Water Management District spokeswoman Robyn Felix.

"Fay certainly helped the northern part of the district," she said. "We're returning to a normal rainfall pattern, but there hasn't been much rain so far in September ... We certainly do need more. Our water resources could use more recovery."

The aquifer levels for the northern section of the district are at 1.64 feet - within the 0 to 4 feet range, which is considered normal. The last time it reached that level was in May 2006, Felix said.

One year ago, the aquifer level was at negative 1.14 feet.

"We're better off than we were last year, but we still need some more rain," warned Felix.

The district, commonly known as Swiftmud, is making preparations for Hurricane Ike, which is predicted to reach the Gulf of Mexico sometime Tuesday morning.

An early track from the National Weather Service has the eye of the storm running north along the West Coast of Florida. If so, the storm could bring a significant amount of rain.

While the northern section of the district enjoyed higher-than-normal rainfall in August, Hernando County had some of the lowest numbers. For the month, the county received 8.68 inches of rain. The historical average is 8.37.

Only Lake County had lower numbers at 8.53 inches.

By comparison, Marion County had 13.57 inches of rain in August. Levy, Citrus and Sumter received 12.15, 11.47 and 10.50 inches, respectively, according to Swiftmud.

It is still too early to determine whether the once-per-week watering restriction will continue beyond September, Felix said.

The aquifer levels for the rest of the district - from Pasco to Charlotte counties - are slightly higher than 3 feet.