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Dam Operation:
Flood pool data Westfield River
Knightville Dam is located on the East Branch of the Westfield River in Huntington, Massachusetts, and is a part of a network of flood damage reduction dams on tributaries of the Connecticut River. 
The Reservoir Regulation Team (RRT), is the "nerve center" for the New England flood damage reduction dams such as Knightville Dam.
Using radio and satellite communications, RRT constantly monitors river levels and weather conditions that influence flood control decisions.
Corps personnel, in conjunction with RRT, regulate the amount of water released downstream by raising or lowering the three gates located in the gatehouse at the dam. In a time of high water, the gates are lowered in order to hold back the water, only to be released when downstream river conditions begin to recede.
In April 1987, a flood similar to that of 1936 occured. Heavy rains fell on a deep snowpack causing rapid melting and run-off. Knightville Dam held back a record amount of flood waters. For only the second time in its history, water flowed over its spillway scouring a channel down to bedrock. However, Knightville slowed down the flow of water reducing serious flooding problems in communities downstream along the Westfield and Connecticut Rivers. 
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