Lake Okeechobee Totally Explained

Everything about Lake Okeechobee totally explained

Lake Okeechobee, (IPA: /okɪtʃobi/) locally referred to as Lake O or The Big Lake is a freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the second-largest freshwater lake wholly within the continental United States, second only to Lake Michigan and the largest in the southern United States. Okeechobee covers 4730 square miles (1,890 km²) and is relatively shallow, with an average depth of only 9 feet (3 m). The lake covers land in Glades, Okeechobee, Martin, Palm Beach, and Hendry counties. Maps of Florida show that all five of these counties meet at a point near the center of the lake.
The name Okeechobee comes from the Hitchiti words "oki" (water) and "chubi" (big), and literally means "big water". It was also previously called Macaco and Mayaimi, the latter being the origin of the name of the city Miami, Florida by way of the Miami River.
The floor of the lake is a limestone basin, and the lake varies in depth from 1 to 12 feet (0.3 to 4 m), its water being somewhat murky from nutrient-enriched runoff from surrounding farmlands. The surface is above sea level, and the lake is enclosed by a 20-foot (6 m) high dike built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after a hurricane in 1928 breached the old dike, flooding surrounding communities and claiming thousands of lives. There are several inflows, including Taylor Creek and the Kissimmee River, and several small outlets, such as the Miami River, the New River on the east, and the Caloosahatchee River (via the Caloosahatchee Canal and Lake Hicpochee) on the southwest.

History

Okeechobee is thought to have been formed out of the ocean about 6,000 years ago when the waters receded. (External Link

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Hurricanes

In 1926, the Great Miami Hurricane hit the Lake Okeechobee area killing approximately 300 people. Two years later in 1928, the Okeechobee Hurricane crossed over the lake killing thousands. The Red Cross reported a figure of 1,836 deaths which the National Weather Service initially accepted; but in 2003, the number was revised to "at least 2,500" (External Link

). In both cases the catastrophe was caused by flooding from a storm surge when strong winds drove water over the 6-foot (2 m) mud dike that circled the lake at the time.
   After the two hurricanes, the Florida State Legislature formed the "Okeechobee Flood Control District". The organization was authorized to cooperate with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in actions to prevent similar disasters. U.S. President Herbert Hoover visited the area personally, and afterward the Corps designed a new plan incorporating construction of channels, gates, and levees. The Okeechobee Waterway was officially opened on March 23 1937, when a series of boats left Fort Myers, Florida on March 22 and on the next day arrived at Stuart, Florida.
   The 1947 Fort Lauderdale Hurricane sent an even larger storm surge nearly over the new dike, causing it to be expanded again in the 1960s.
   Three recent hurricanes, Hurricane Frances, Hurricane Jeanne and Hurricane Wilma, had no major adverse effects on communities surrounding Lake Okeechobee.

National Scenic Trail

The 20 foot (6 m) wide dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee is a part of the Florida Trail, a 1,400 mile long trail that's a National Scenic Trail. There is a well-maintained paved pathway along the entire perimeter used by hikers and bicyclists and wide enough to accommodate authorized vehicles.

Environmental concerns

In 2007, during a drought, state water and wildlife managers removed thousands of truckloads of toxic mud from the lake's floor, in an effort to return to the lake's natural sandy base and create clearer water and better habitat for wildlife. The mud contained elevated levels of arsenic and other pesticides. According to tests from the South Florida Water Management District, arsenic levels on the northern part of the lake bed were as much as four times the limit for residential land. Independent tests found the mud to be too polluted for use on agricultural or commercial lands, and therefore difficult to even dispose on land.

The lake in popular culture

Lake Okeechobee is the setting of a climactic scene in Carl Hiaasen's 2002 novel Basket Case (Ch. 28).
Lake Okeechobee is the setting of a significant part of Zora Neale Hurston's novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, and the movie of the same name. Janie and Tea Cake go there to work "on the muck".

Further Information

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