Received this information from the staff at Chester Woods:
This picture, taken at 9:30 a.m., Mon. morning, tells the story of
Chester Woods following the deluge. At present the Park is closed to
the public. The lake is down a foot since yesterday. The tops of the
guard rail posts were underwater yesterday and you can see the debris
line on the pavement. The water was almost up to the top of the
“green” section of the red-yellow-green dam/spillway warning stake(seen
on the way to the park office). Had the water been to the top of the
red it would have meant it was at the spillway. The water is such that
a boat would be unable to go under the foot bridge by the boat ramp.
All of the fishing docks have been dislocated, the beach is badly
eroded and is closed for the season.
The camp ground was evacuated at 6:00 a.m. Sunday of approximately 16
sites which were occupied with most of the camping rigs/units being
left in the campground. All of the camping units are safe though it
will be awhile before they can be accessed and removed. The camp ground
hosts have remained in the campground. At present the camp ground is
closed and it will not be known until later this week as to when it
will reopen. The staff, as yet, has not been able to get out on the
trails to assess damage to the trails and bridges. At the moment the
staff are doing what they can to secure the park and begin preliminary
work.
Several calls have been received, at the park, from persons
volunteering to assist with cleanup. At this point it is not known
what assistance will be needed or when. Probably not for a week or two
until after the water has gone down and a needs assessment can be made.
Assistance will also be needed, at Oxbow and Oronoco County Parks.
I personally don’t know the status of Oronoco Park, but Oxbow is
currently an isolated island and of course is closed as well. We will
keep you informed of the needs as they arise.