**This article was published in October of 2013. For a list of flood closures around Belton and Stillhouse Hollow Lakes in June, 2016, click the button below.**

 

Due to the partial shutdown of the federal government, access to two local lakes will be cut off Wednesday evening.

Lake Belton and Stillhouse Hollow Lake will close indefinitely at the end of business hours today according to Ronnie Bruggman with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Entrances to the Corps-managed reservoirs will be closed, shutting down boat ramps, picnic areas, campsites and beaches. Campers who’ve reserved sites are expected to receive refunds.

As of Thursday, a few emergency personnel will monitor the lakes while the majority of Corps employees go on unpaid leave, according to Bruggman.

The Tuffman Series on Stillhouse Hollow Lake and Fishing for Freedom on Lake Belton, two local fishing tournaments expected to bring hundreds of boaters and participants to Bell County later this month, have not been cancelled, but a prolonged government shutdown could impact the organization of those events.

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