Hesperia Dam water levels going down

Photos by Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief

Story by Allison Scarbrough, News Editor

HESPERIA — Water levels on the Hesperia Dam are going down following several days of heavy rains that swelled the White River, threatening a breach.

“The dam is doing really good,” said Hesperia Village President Mike Farber Sunday, April 19. “It’s coming down up above the dam. It’s coming down gradually. It’s not going over the spillways anymore. Down below, it’s still flooding. Hopefully, tomorrow we can start putting some boards back in it to slow it down a little bit. Right now, it’s wide open, so she’s pushing a lot of water down.”

Removal of the boards played a critical role in keeping the dam intact. By removing the boards, it deepened the dam to allow more water to flow through. “They call them ‘stop logs,’ but they’re actually just boards that slide down over the back of the dam and that control the height of the pond behind it,” said the village leader. “Normally, when it’s not raining, we have boards in there, and then when it rains, you pull them out.”

The area had been getting so much rain that crews could not get the boards out Wednesday. So they used a mini excavator to remove them. “Before we got the boards out, we were really concerned.”

Hesperia is one of many Michigan communities threatened by potentially failing dams caused by swelling rivers due to the relentless rain. Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency for 38 of Michigan’s 83 counties, including Oceana and Newaygo. The village sits on the county line, so the western half of it is in Oceana, and the eastern portion is situated in Newaygo County.

A flash flood watch issued by the National Weather Service remains in effect until noon Monday, April 20, and a flood warning continues until 11 p.m. Sunday. 

The threat of debris plugging the dam continues to remain a threat. “If a lot of debris came down and jammed it, it could break it, and if it broke it, that’s where your flash floods come in.”

Farber remains optimistic that the dam will continue to hold strong. “It’s looking good. Everything is holding. Now it’s just matter for the water to go down.”

No more rain is forecasted for several days until Friday, April 24. 

“Once the river is back down and we can inspect the dam and say it’s OK, I would say in about 10 days, we can bring it back to how it was so it’s safe.”

Public areas along the river are barricaded to keep people away from it. “It’s not worth anyone’s life to try to go fishing or kayaking. You get out in that main stream right now, and you’re done.”

Despite the barricades and warnings, people still try to get close to the danger. “The hardest thing is keeping people away from it,” he said. Police are no longer giving out warnings — tickets are being issued for trespassing. “They’re at the point now where they’re just giving them tickets.”

Hesperia Police Department, Oceana County Sheriff’s Office, Newaygo County Sheriff’s Office and the Michigan State Police are patrolling the area, he said.

He is hopeful that Maple Island Road may be re-opened Sunday.

Farber said this situation has proven how well all the different departments and agencies work together. “Everyone has worked really well together. Emergency responses from both counties have been wonderful.”

A meeting is scheduled for Wednesday evening, April 22, at the Hesperia Fire Station to go over how things were handled. The historic flood is the first time all of the organizations worked together on an emergency of this magnitude. “They all worked together as a team. We just want to see if we can improve on anything. I think everything went really well, but there is room for some improvement.

“The number one thing is keeping the public safe.”

Photos were taken Thursday, April 16, 2026.

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