Folsom Dam floodgates open for first time in 5 years

The floodgates of Folsom Dam were opened Monday, March 7, 2016, to let out the most amount of water at the dam since 2012. The floodgates of Folsom Dam were opened Monday, March 7, 2016, to let out the most amount of water at the dam since 2012. Photo: David Bienick/KCRA Photo: David Bienick/KCRA Image 1 of / 27 Caption Close Folsom Dam floodgates open for first time in 5 years 1 / 27 Back to Gallery

FOLSOM, Calif. (KCRA) — After a significant weather system moved through Northern California over the weekend, the floodgates of Folsom Dam were opened Monday to let out the most amount of water all winter, officials said.

Three of the dam's eight gates were opened at about 1 p.m. for the first time in five years to provide for flood control as the region welcomed some much-needed rain to the Valley and more snow in the Sierra.

Water managers at Folsom Lake said releases from the lake will likely increase ahead of the next storm, expected to move in later this week, as inflows remain at 27,000 cubic feet per second, according to the Bureau of Reclamation.

The maximum capacity of Folsom Lake is 977,000 acre-feet. As of Friday, the water levels stood at 610,000 acre-feet, but by Monday morning, the lake had risen to 684,000 acre-feet.

Between about 6 a.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday, Grass Valley received 2.22 inches of rain, while Sacramento and Marysville exceeded a half-inch of rain, according to KCRA 3 meteorologist Tamara Berg.

This story originally appeared on KCRA.com.