Hazard buoys being deployed on Lanier; Lanier Parade of Lights canceled

BUFORD - Two new signs have emerged reflecting the rapid drop in the level of Lake Lanier.

For one, buoys are being deployed around the lake marking underwater hazards that are now exposed or lurking just below the surface, and the Lake Lanier Association has canceled the Lanier Parade of Lights which had been scheduled for early December.

The level of the lake early Wednesday was 1059.37. That is 11.63 feet below full pool and down five feet since early October.

Lanier continues to drop at a rate of about a foot per week as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers steps up water releases to keep downstream water levels up.

The last time the lake was full was in May and officials predict the level will drop another two feet by the end of the month.

The lake is nearing the historic low it reached during Georgia's devastating drought of 2007-2009.

(AccessNorthGa.com's Ken Stanford contributed to this report.)

Same cove on Aug. 31, 2011.

Cove at Holly Park on Nov. 2, 2011.

Cove at Holly Park 11-2-11

Cove at Holly Park 11-2-11

http://accesswdun.com/article/2011/11/243254