A Duke Energy hydro station where water moves from Lake James down the Catawba River may be partially fixed next month after suffering damage in Hurricane Helene.
Recently, the company said one of three generating units in the energy station is expected be restored by mid-February.
Ben Williamson, a spokesman for Duke Energy’s hydro operations team, said once the first generating unit on the Bridgewater Hydro Station is restored, the company will be able to pull water through the system and lower the water level at Lake James. Duke aims to get the water level down to average level for this time of year, which is 94 to 95 feet, Williamson said. The lake has been above full pond since Helene hit in late September.
Water flows over the Lake James dam after the remnants of Hurricane Helene hit Burke County on Sept. 27. Flooding from the storm damaged the Bridgewater Hydro Station on North Powerhouse Road in Burke County.
Restoring the first unit in February is a month earlier than Duke originally expected. In November 2024, the company said the first unit was expected to be restored by March 31.
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A second damaged unit at the station is expected to return to service by mid-March, Williamson said. That is three months earlier than the June 30 date a report made to the company in October originally anticipated.
The three generating units, which include turbines, at the Bridgewater Hydro Station on North Powerhouse Road use water falling from an elevated reservoir to generate electricity at a hydro station, according to Duke Energy. The units also help move water through the dam.
After the hurricane, Duke found that the basement and turbine floors at the station were completely submerged during the flooding and a small minimum flow unit was completely submerged and will take longer to restore than the generating units, according to a report.
The report says the minimum flow unit likely won’t be repaired and returned to service until Dec. 31. Other restoration at the station includes repairing or replacing cables and other systems, replacing a transformer, and reworking or replacing a hydraulic brake system and controls equipment, the report said.
With the generating units down, Lake Jake has regularly been above full pond (100 feet) since the hurricane. On Jan. 21, the lake was at 100.1 feet. The annual normal target lake level in January is 96 feet, according to Duke Energy information.
Water is being released downstream through the valves at the Bridgewater Hydro Station and the Catawba bypassed reach, the company has said. With the valves, the Lake James lake level has slowly declined but rain could cause the level to rise above full pond elevation, Duke Energy said.
Flooding from Helene caused equipment damage at four Duke Energy hydro stations, according to a report to the company in October.
Lake level information is available at .
