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In March, Hogansville’s Lake Jimmy Jackson flooded due to weather conditions brought on by the storm front that included a tornado that severely damaged parts of West Point.

Approximately two months later, after being closed for damages caused by the storm, the lake has officially reopened.

Lisa Kelly, Hogansville’s city manager, said the flooding caused damage to the dock and beach areas of the lake.

“When we had the flood back in March, the lake levels rose higher than the pylons that held it. As the lake levels dropped, it twisted the dock on those poles and in return damaged not only the dock but also the poles and dislodged one of them. When the dock came back down and rested where it was supposed to, it was off considerably to the point it was dangerous,” Kelly said.

She said when lake levels rose, it washed up mud and debris onto the beach area.

“As those levels went down, the debris and the mud didn’t go anywhere —we had a mess,” Kelly said. “We could have opened the beach area back up but it would not have been ideal and wouldn’t be what we wanted it to be. We pride ourselves on that lake and it being a beautiful spot for recreation. We wanted to make sure when it reopened that it was as pristine as we could have it.”

Kelly said as the repair and clean-up process began, the city had to file an insurance claim to see what could be covered.

“Repairs take a while, especially with all the damage that we had in this area, LaGrange and West Point. Ours was not a priority or an emergency like so many others where people lost their homes and businesses. Nonetheless, it took us a little while to get a dock repair person out here but now it’s fully repaired,” Kelley said.

Kelly estimates that the cost to repair the dock was around $12,000.

In the aftermath of the flooding, she said the new dock will be made to hopefully withstand extreme flooding.

“We hope that the repairs that were made to the dock were sufficient so that it will protect us in an ongoing situation or another situation where this might happen again,” Kelly said. “We’ve made those the poles higher and positioned them a little bit differently so when the dock comes down it will it will not shift.”

As the lake reopens, Kelly said the residents and the council members are excited to have it available for the Memorial Day weekend.

“I have no doubt there will be many people there over Memorial Day weekend. It’s a popular picnic spot, a popular swimming area, and many people fish out there. I have no doubt we will have many people there ready to take advantage of it,” Kelley said. “The council members are excited that we’re able to make it a wonderful recreation area and a good spot for families to visit and stay right here in Hogansville.”