California’s ghost lake nears size of Lake Tahoe

A car is pictured stranded in floodwater after floods on 24 March 2023 near Corcoran, California, the biggest city near Lake Tulare. Photo: David Mcnew / Getty

By Robyn White
23 May 2023

(Newsweek) – A ghost lake in California could expand to the size of Lake Tahoe.

Lake Tulare in the San Joaquin Valley used to be the largest freshwater lake in the Western U.S. It dried up some 80 years ago when the land was re-developed for agricultural purposes.

But the lake occasionally re-emerges after particularly wet seasons. This year, a historic amount of rainfall battered California, which saw the lake rapidly re-emerging.

It is expected the lake could grow up to 182 square miles this week. That is nearly the size of Lake Tahoe, a huge freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada Mountains that covers 191.6 square miles.

Areas of California, particularly the San Joaquin Valley, have seen intense flooding in recent weeks.

During the winter storms, a record amount of snowpack accumulated in the surrounding Sierra Nevada. However, the state is now seeing warming temperatures, causing the snow to melt at a rapid pace.

As a result, many lakes and rivers are overflowing. This can be seen in the Merced River in Yosemite National Park, which has been forced to close several areas to the public due to the floods.

24 May 2023: In California, a ghost lake might enlarge to Lake Tahoe proportions. The biggest freshwater lake in the Western United States used to be Lake Tulare in the San Joaquin Valley. When the land was redeveloped for agricultural use about 80 years ago, it dried up. But occasionally, during unusually rainy seasons, the lake reappears. This year, California experienced historically heavy rainfall, which caused the lake to emerge quickly. This week, it’s possible that the lake may expand to 182 square miles. Video: News Channel

The expansion of Lake Tulare has wreaked havoc on local communities, flooding many farmlands. The largest city close to the lake is Corcoran, which has a population of 22,000. Many homes were flooded and roads closed.

There are also smaller towns in the lake’s vicinity such as Allensworth and Alpaugh, which have suffered from floods caused by overflowing rivers. Many areas were under evacuation warnings.

However, despite the predictions that the dry lake will expand this coming week, flood predictions released on Monday do not point to disaster.

Although it was feared that as more snowpack melts the water would continue to submerge the surrounding communities,

Flood predictions from the Department of Water Resources report that melting snow will push the lake to 181.1 feet above sea level by the end of May.

However, as nearby communities sit 188 feet above sea level, flood risk is not as severe as it has been. [more]

California’s Ghost Lake Nears Size of Lake Tahoe