Water officials race to release water from Anderson Reservoir

MORGAN HILL, Calif. -- Water officials are in a race against time to release as much water as possible to prevent flooding at the outlet of the Anderson Reservoir in Morgan Hill into Coyote Creek.

RELATED: Anderson Reservoir in Morgan Hill is at risk of overflowing

Thunderous amounts of water gush from an outlet at the base of Anderson Dam.

"It's beautiful," said Maria Ramo of Morgan Hill. "I love it. We come here at least once a week to watch since it started."

Relentless rain is filling the reservoir.

"The storms have outpaced the avility of the outlet to release the water," said Jim McCann of the Santa Clara Valley Water District. "99 percent of capacity."

Morgan Hill resident Steve Lane says the water is within a foot of the spillway top. "It's like 624.3 feet and that concrete's at 625."

If you think the outlet is impressive, just wait for the spillway.

"It's like that only ten times bigger splash," said another Morgan Hill resident Alex Aguilera. "Because it drops over a 70-foot cliff. It's cool, but I'm a little nervous."

Areas along Coyote Creek could experience flooding.

Resident Gabriel Mendoza told ABC7 News, "As long as this thing doesn't break or we don't gotta jump in canoes or nothing like that, we'll be alright."

The dam is slated for earthquake retrofitting but is otherwise fine making it a fascinating spectacle for locals.

"It's so cool, this was my first time," said Nathaniel Weaver of Morgan Hill. "It's just so cool."

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