It’s getting harder to put boats in at Lake Wylie. It could get worse by week’s end.

Continued drought conditions in the Charlotte region is causing more boat ramp closings on Lake Wylie.

Duke Energy announced today more ramp closings at Buster Boyd and South Point access areas. The Allison Creek access is completely closed. Copperhead Island in Mecklenburg County and Ebenezer Park in York County are also closed.

“Duke Energy is monitoring lake levels at boat ramps and will close boat ramps when needed to ensure public safety,” the company that manages Catawba River lakes states. “Due to low lake levels, Duke Energy has closed an additional boat ramp at the Buster Boyd Access Area and five of the six ramps at the South Point Access Area.”

Barriers block boats from accessing the water. The only site completely open is Nivens Creek Access Area, where ramps run deeper into the water.

With the latest ramp closings at Buster Boyd and South Point, Duke noted the remaining ramps “may be closed by the end of the week.”

“Duke Energy will continue to monitor lake levels to determine whether continued decreasing lake levels will require closing additional boat ramps on Lake Wylie,” read the release.

Lake level is at 94.4 today, 4 inches above the minimum target level. Under normal conditions, 3 feet below full pond is the target, and 6 feet below is the minimum level before the shallowest water intakes or other environmental factors are threatened.

According to lakes.duke-energy.com/, “Long-term dry weather conditions have resulted in the implementation of Stage 1 drought conditions for the Catawba-Wateree River Basin. The community is asked to be mindful of its water use and consider conserving energy, which also saves water. Residents who use water from a Duke Energy lake for lawn irrigation are asked to limit watering to Tuesdays and Saturdays.”

For updates, visit Duke-Energy.com/lakes or by call 800-829-5253.

Current list of closings

▪ South Point : 5 of 6 ramps closed

▪ Nivens Creek: 2 of 2 ramps open

▪ Buster Boyd : 3 of 4 ramps closed

▪ Allison Creek: all 4 ramps closed

▪ Ebenezer: all 3 ramps closed by York County

▪ Copperhead: all 4 ramps closed by Mecklenburg County