PIERRE, S.D. (DRG News) – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will increase the release rate of the Oahe Dam to 65,000 cubic feet per second Thursday.

At the Corps’ annual fall meeting today, power production team leader for Missouri River water management Mike Swenson says releases from Oahe will remain high through next month.

Swenson says they hope to evacuate the water the Missouri River System’s annual flood control zone prior to next year’s runoff season– but it may not be possible.

He says a 10-day extension of the navigation season below Gavins Point Dam gives them a little extra time to evacuate water from storage in the upper reservoirs.

Swenson says they can push about 1-million acre feet of water out of the Missouri River System after it freezes over, but they have to be cautious about ice jams causing blockages downstream.