District crews were able to repair the leaking embankment late on July 7, restoring partial flow to the Potholes Canal that evening. Full flows were restored to the canal mid-morning on July 8. Deliveries will be made to waterusers as water is available throughout the District on Friday, July 8 and Saturday, July 9. Waterusers should communicate with their respective ditchriders and watermasters to coordinate water deliveries.

Midday today, Thursday, July 7th, 2022, South Columbia Basin Irrigation District staff discovered a significant leak at the north end of the Potholes Canal located in the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge. Because the leak threatened imminent canal failure, the decision was made to turn off water delivery from the Potholes canal. District crews and equipment are being mobilized to investigate the extent of the leak and the needed repairs.

Waterusers are urged to communicate with their watermasters and ditchriders to coordinate shut down of water deliveries. District crews will work around the clock to restore service. Water deliveries in all blocks except 2, 3, and 18 are affected. The duration of the outage is unknown at this time pending an investigation. This announcement will be updated as we know more and can establish an anticipated return to service.