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TARRANT COUNTY (CBS11) – The Tarrant Regional Water District started closing lakes Tuesday, as the effects from last year’s record rains continued to spill over into the new season.

District engineers closed Lake Bridgeport and expected Eagle Mountain Lake to close by Wednesday.

Fort Worth closed Lake Worth late Tuesday as runoff from two days of heavy rains continued to stream in.

Inside a monitoring room at the TRWD, water resources engineers moved back and forth between computer, comparing models updated by the second with data streams. A team lead used the data to make decisions on opening and closing release gates on reservoirs, relaying the information to district officers in the field.

“We knew based on the rain that has fallen and how much waters flowing in the rivers, about what volume and at what time it would reach our reservoirs,” said TRWD Director Rachel Ickert.

The team is only able to forecast lake and stream levels based on rain that has already fallen.

Forecasts change every time it begins to rain again.

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) – The continued rainfall has water levels rising, and that’s bad news for some people living in Lake Worth. Families in some communities are anxious as they wait and watch the encroaching water.

The number homeowners are concerned with is 595 feet — that’s when flooding can become a problem. Before sunrise, the lake level was almost at 597.

On some parts of the lake, that extra two feet of water means boat docks are nearly submerged, backyards can turn into ponds and water creeping into homes is a very real possibility.

Some homeowners, watching the water quickly rise, say the situation is simply too close for comfort. “Three days ago it was about 100 feet back from where it is right now. Back to where the, uh, you see where the sailboat is? It’s another 10 feet past that,” recalled Ted Hubble. “There are a couple of fellas [who live] a little farther down the road that if you run a fast boat behind their house the waves will come in the door.”

People are very wary of any more rain, especially up around Eagle Mountain Lake or Lake Bridgeport. Lake Worth is downstream from those two lakes, so water released upstream means rising lake levels downstream.

Unfortunately for people in the area, watching the water rise has become a nerve-racking routine. Floodwater was an issue in June and November of last year.

Lake Worth resident Taylor Neff said, “It’s tense,” and then hoped out loud that officials in the area would take the proper flood control measures. “We’re used to it right now, but we’re just keeping an eye on the numbers. We’re watching what those two lakes are letting out. We’re hoping the TRD (Tarrant Regional Water District) will help us out a little bit, because they’re letting a little too much in right now.”

Lake Worth doesn’t have a floodgate it can open to release water, so that means it can only rise over the banks.
The City of Fort Worth has closed the boat ramps at Lake Worth and is asking people with boats on the lake not to use them to prevent wakes from damaging homes and boaters from hitting large objects hidden just beneath the surface of the murky floodwater.

As it stands, meteorologists are forecasting wavs of heavy rains for the next couple of days. In the next 48 hours, parts of North Texas could an additional 1 to 2 inches of rain.

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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LAKE WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Kristine Williams’ paddleboat floated away in the floodwaters and and right into the hands of thieves.

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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LAKE WORTH (CBS11) – For years, homeowners living along Lake Worth had different worries: for example, “Will we ever get any water in this lake?” asks Elizabeth Tanner, “Because I love to fish! Couldn’t fish because there wasn’t no water out there.”

Now, Tanner could fish from her back door because the lake is now just a few feet beyond it.

She’s not alone.

Homeowners all around the lake are watching their backyards disappear as the lake rises.

“It happens quick,” says John Degroat, who lives on the other side of the lake. “It’s not happening because of the rain here… it’s happening because they’re letting it out of Bridgeport and Eagle Mountain Lake.

Degroat is a self-described ‘lake rat.’ He says he and wife Dottie love the lake lifestyle and jumped at the chance to retire along Lake Worth. As such, he says he understands that the water has to go somewhere.

“We want those lakes to be as empty as they can for the spring rains. If they’re full and this is full, then the water’s up here and you don’t want that.”

According to the National Weather Service website, Lake Worth hovered about a half foot below flood stage on Thursday afternoon. The lake level had dropped a tiny bit in the past two days.

Still, many lake homeowners wonder what North Texas’ stormy spring will bring if the lakes are already this full, this soon.

“We’ve had this water for almost a year like this and it’s unbelievable,” says Tanner. “This came up so fast yesterday, I could not believe it.”

Meanwhile, the Degroats say they have lessened their flood worries by choosing their lake front property well—with plenty of backyard cushion.

“I know a lot of our neighbors aren’t real thrilled,” says Dottie Degroat, “But we’re okay.”

Elizabeth Tanner says her ‘backyard cushion’ is now at about nine feet.

“We’re in pretty good shape, unless they let more water out. I hope it stays right where it is,” and then adding with a chuckle, “and doesn’t come any farther!”

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Those who live around the lakes as well as those visiting the lakes should stay vigilant, according to the Fort Worth Water Department.

They say there could be increased wildlife activity around area lakes as the result of the higher water levels.

Snakes, fire ants, alligators, deer and other critters have had their nesting and feeding spots disturbed and may be seeking higher ground.

In addition, high water in creeks feeding into Lake Worth may cause portions of some low-lying roadways to become submerged, preventing residents and emergency responders from getting in and out.

Residents may encounter detours on Malaga Drive and Marina Drive at Comanche Trail and at Bomber Road and Shore View Drive, according to the water department news release.

Lake Worth was closed to all boating traffic at 5 p.m. on Tuesday because the lake level was projected to exceed the 595.5-elevation that evening. The lake will remain closed to all boating until the level dips to the 595 elevation and continues to demonstrate a decline.

Once the water level reaches the 595-elevation, the water will be swept for hazardous debris before it is reopened. It’s not yet clear when that will happen.

You can find the latest lake levels here.

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Fort Worth Police say an 19-year-old was walking near the spillway at 6296 Hatchery Road and accidentally fell off.

Police say he was swept away by the current.

Dive team recovered his body around 3:00 p.m.

The victim’s friend Diego Reyna tells CBS11, “We were walking across that and then he slipped and the current took him, took us both.   We fell in the he was fine and then he went back under water and that’s when he didn’t come back up.”

Lake Worth (credit Chopper 11)

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Thanks to all of the heavy rain, Lake Worth was closed to all boating activity starting at 9:00 a.m. on Friday morning. The water level has risen by almost half a foot.

Local officials decided to close the lake to boating activity since the rising lake level could cause docks to become submerged, creating a navigational hazard. Boat owners who live near the lake have been asked to keep their vessels off of the water while the boat ramps are closed.

One resident said that the water does get pretty high after days of heavy rain. “It happened last year also,” said Ron Bruce. “In fact, that’s kind of how you know how high the lake is, go down to the boat ramp and see how much the lake is actually in the parking lot, you know, because it will swamp the ramp where you can’t even see it.”

The City of Fort Worth is also reminding residents near the lake to remain vigilant as the heavy rains could lead to an increase in wildlife activity — including alligators, fire ants and snakes who could be seeking food sources on higher ground.

None of that, however, stopped some people from showing up and walking past the road barricades with fishing poles to enjoy the higher water from the shore.

There is no timetable for how long the lake will remain closed. North Texas has been under a Flash Flood Watch that is set to end at midnight — after which, the area is expected to begin drying out, with no rain chances in the weather forecast beginning on Sunday.

Officials on Friday morning also said that Lake Bridgeport would be closed to recreational boating until further notice.

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Lake Worth opened back up to boaters Tuesday morning after being closed earlier this month due to flooding. Storms brought the water level up by almost half a foot, but a couple of mostly dry days was enough to lower the lake back down to a safe level.

Officials opened up the lake to boaters at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday.

Fishermen and nearby business owners were glad to hear the good news. “I didn’t have any place to fish, because all the lakes are flooded right now,” fisherman Jim Moore stated Tuesday morning. “You’re kind of at the mercy of a little bitty lake with a whole bunch of boats on it.”

There are still some things, however, that boaters and fishermen should know before jumping into the water.

While the lake level has gone down, anyone heading into Lake Worth should exercise caution, because there may still be some debris floating around, or hidden hazards such as submerged boat docks or tree stumps.

Also, animals living around the lake may have had their nesting or feeding spots disturbed by the flooding, and have moved to higher ground. This could include fire ants, snakes, deer and alligators. So, lake visitors should be careful around the edges of the water as well, because of this potential for increased wildlife activity.

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TARRANT COUNT (CBSDFW.COM) – While many waited in horror for divers to recover the body of a toddler that an alligator snatched from a Disney resort beach, North Texas wildlife experts insisted that alligator attacks on humans are extremely rare. Although the gators are an uncommon sight in North Texas, they have been spotted in area waterways: and here recently, a few feet from John DeGroat’s lakeside backyard!

“I look out there and I see an 8 foot to 10 foot alligator,” says DeGroat, who lives on Lake Worth, “swimming from one dock to my dock.” DeGroat grew up on Lake Worth and is a self-described ‘lake rat’. So a lake rat knows better than to mess with an alligator.

“I don’t have dogs. I don’t have kids… so, it’s not a big scare—but people around here do, so a lot of them are afraid.”

DeGroat and wife, Dottie, decided to watch the gator from afar. So they invited friends over, took plenty of pictures from their patio and watched as the creature lurked beneath the surface for about three hours, trying to snap its powerful jaws around an unsuspecting duck.

Over the years, DeGroat says he’s heard about gator sightings along Lake Worth: but, never one so big, nor quite so close—telling CBS 11 that he’s walked along that shoreline “many times… we’re out there all the time.”

Signs have been posted near the lake shore to remind some—and warn others—that the animals could be nearby.

“Maybe early in the morning, you’ll see something floating in the water,” says Douglas Stott, who today was standing waist deep in the murky water fishing. “Gators are basically shy, as long as you don’t bother them, they basically leave you alone.” Stott spent time in Florida, so gators are nothing new. Still, experts warn that the normally shy animals can turn dangerous—even for adults.

“Females make a giant mound to lay their eggs and they stay with them until they hatch,” says Bradley Lawrence, reptile and amphibian expert at the Dallas Zoo. “And they’ll protect that mound from anything — getting between a mom and a nest creates a very dangerous situation.”

Lawrence also warns that alligators should never be fed in the wild. “Once you feed an alligator, it’s like a bear in Yellowstone: once that animal loses its fear of humans, then that’s when that becomes a problem. They start associating humans with food and as a food source and that becomes a dangerous situation.”

And when you’re aware that a gator could be nearby, experts say avoid shallow murky water, especially at dusk and dawn when they are most likely to be hunting. Even so, they say, adults have little to fear.

Still…

“This is a recreational lake,” says DeGroat, “do you really want to be in there with a gator that’s this big?”

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – A family is grieving the loss of a three-year-old little boy who drowned Saturday night on Lake Worth. Fort Worth Police said this remains under investigation.

Investigators said the family of the boy had been at the lake during the day, and they were about to leave. As they were getting out of the water, the family removed the little boy’s floatation device.

Police said when the family turned to go, the child was suddenly missing.

Another family member found the boy in the lake and pulled him out of the water. The family called for help and began performing CPR.

Paramedics took the boy to a nearby hospital where he later died.

Jasmine Reyes and her family were setting up a barbecue nearby when they saw the police collecting evidence by the beach. She said this is a painful reminder of how quickly a tragedy can happen.

“It’s heartbreaking, but I mean they were about to leave. They did the right thing putting that floating device on the child, but kids are so quick. As soon as you take your eyes off of them, they’re gone,” Reyes said.

Police stress that this case remains under investigation, but they say at this point details point to an unintentional accident.

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM/AP) – A man who skipped out on his sex abuse trial in Fort Worth has been recaptured.

Jayson Neal Sparks was taken into custody late Friday afternoon in a wooded area near Lake Worth. His attorney, Patrick Curran, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that authorities tracked his 34-year-old client’s cellphone.

Sparks had just testified in his own defense Wednesday when the judge called a lunch break. Sparks, who was free on bail, left the courtroom and did not return.

Sparks was found guilty of one count of continuous sex abuse of a child under 14. He was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison.

Sparks remains in Tarrant County jail on one count of sexual abuse of a child under 14 and no bond has been set.

(©2016 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – A man died after a motorcycle crash near Lake Worth overnight and investigators believe the man hit a deer while driving close to the lake.

Fort Worth police say it happened on Watercress Drive near Lakeridge Road right around 12:30 a.m. this morning.

He was tossed from the bike and found lying in the roadway.

He was taken to the hospital but later died.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner identified the man as 53-year-old Fred Bandy.

(©2017 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

LAKE WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – A man from Dallas is facing up to 20 years in prison after authorities located 15 pounds of marijuana in his car earlier this week. The discovery was made at around 10:00 p.m. on Monday night in the 3700 block of Boat Club Road.

Ofc. Robert Watson of the Lake Worth Police Department was conducting a traffic stop on a vehicle when he noticed the smell of marijuana. The driver, identified as 35-year-old Christopher Neil Ryan, was then found to have had 15 pounds of the illegal drug in his car.

“Marijuana has a pretty strong odor,” police spokesman Don Price told KRLD. “The officer was able to smell that odor coming from the car.” Capt. Steven Carpenter commended Watson for being aware of his surroundings and preventing this marijuana from reaching the streets of North Texas.

The street value of this marijuana was estimated to be about $14,000.

Ryan was arrested and charged with delivery of marijuana between five and 50 pounds, a second-degree felony. The offense is punishable by a prison sentence between two and 20 years, and a fine of no more than $10,000.

LAKE WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – The investigation into a suspect who has been accused of secretly recording a woman in a dressing room has led to the discovery of hundreds of secretly recorded videos. Alexander Martinez, 32, is now charged with Invasive Visual Recording.

The Lake Worth Police Department said that a female shopper at the Target store located in the 6600 block of Lake Worth Boulevard filed a complaint after realizing that the suspect was recording her while she was changing. “She was shocked, confused. Who would do this, you know? She had little ones in there, too,” said Det. Richard Martinez.

(credit: Lake Worth Police Department)

The woman reacted in surprise and the suspect, police said, ran away. A week later, though, he returned, and alert Target employees called police. Officers arrested the suspect and, after obtaining a warrant, searched his cell phone and other devices found at his home.

What they discovered left even them stunned.

“I’ve been in law enforcement almost 30 years and I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Det. Martinez. “There’s hundreds of women being violated.”

(credit: Lake Worth Police Department)

Police said that the suspect shot video up the skirts of women and teenagers. “He’ll put the phone down recording and then just slide it with his shoes,” said Det. Martinez. There are videos dating back to 2011 taken inside Galleria Dallas, North East Mall in Hurst, Walmart stores and Hooters restaurants, among other locations.

Some recordings of women in changing rooms were taken over the tops of stalls with selfie sticks. Other show women in their own homes. “It’s peeping into windows at night,” Det. Martinez said, “where you can see women walking around in their homes or bedrooms.”

The videos don’t stop there. “It scares me, because it escalates,” said Det. Martinez.

(credit: Lake Worth Police Department)

Several videos, Det. Martinez said, show the suspect in physical contact with apparent victims. Police, though, need to find the women to learn, for certain, whether the videos were taken without consent, before filing further charges. In most cases, it appears clear that the women never realized that they were being recorded.

“There’s some where they’re standing next to their husband or their boyfriend, and that’s how bold this guy was getting, because he doesn’t care,” said Det. Martinez.

The suspect has already bonded out of jail on the charge against him. Investigators are asking anyone who thinks that they may be a victim to contact the Lake Worth Police Department.

LAKE WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Lake Worth police have scheduled meetings with four women who suspect they’re among the hundreds appearing in what appear to be secretly recorded videos.

Investigators say they discovered the videos after charging Alexander Martinez, 23, with invasive visual recording for allegedly capturing images of a woman undressing in a Target dressing room.

Alexander Martinez

Officers plan to sit down with the other women who’ve contacted them to review portions of the videos recovered from Martinez’s cell phone and home to see if they can identify themselves.

Victims will need to confirm the videos were taken without their consent before further charges can be filed.

Police have also charged a woman named Janna McFadden for interfering in their investigation.

When officers first confronted Martinez in March, they say he alerted McFadden with a text. His arrest affidavit claims she texted back, telling him “to forward the pictures… and then ‘delete, delete, delete’ them.”

CBS 11 discovered Martinez and McFadden both live in Hurst with their parents in homes that sit back to back.

Neither answered the door Friday afternoon.

Down the street, Charlie McGregor said he often saw Martinez exercising in his garage. “He works out. Looks like a boxer,” he noted.

Now, McGregor says he no longer wants him as a neighbor.

“I have a granddaughter. A 5-year-old granddaughter. She’s going be here this evening. I don’t like it,” he said.

Another neighbor who did not want to be interviewed said she was shocked and described Martinez as kind and respectful, if a bit strange. She called McFadden quiet and trusting.

Lake Worth police aren’t sure what motive the pair may have had but say many of the women seen in the recovered videos appear unaware they were being recorded through a window in their home, inside dressing rooms or underneath their skirts while in public.

Detectives say they recognize The Galleria Dallas and the North East Mall in Hurst as places where videos were taken. They are still working to identify other locations, potentially throughout the Metroplex, as well as the women in the recordings.

Investigators are asking anyone who believes they may have been a victim to contact the Lake Worth Police Department.

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Divers from the Fort Worth Fire Department pulled the body of an “older man” out of Lake Worth.

This happened after a boater called to report he believed he found a body in the lake.

The recovery took place on the south end of the lake around 12:30 p.m. Monday.

body recovered from Lake Worth (Courtesy: Fort Worth Fire Dept.)

There is no word on how long he had been in the water or when the victim went missing.

The Fort Worth Police Department and Fire Department were on the scene investigating.

An autopsy will be performed.

UPDATE: Tarrant Regional Water District Police confirm the victim’s body was found and recovered around 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – The Fort Worth and Azle Fire Departments spent several hours searching for a man who disappeared after the boat he was in capsized on the north end of Lake Worth.

The search took place in a creek between Eagle Mountain Lake and Lake Worth.

Search crews also used drones to try to find him.

search for missing fisherman on Lake Worth (Chopper 11)

Fort Worth Police said two men were in a boat fishing in the area just below the Eagle Mountain Lake Spillway when their boat capsized.

Rescuers were able to get to one of the men and he is okay.

“It’s pretty windy.  Lots of trees in the creek area.  It will be a difficult search for crews,” said Mike Drivdahl of the Fort Worth Fire Department.

Firefighters said the area is a popular but dangerous spot for people to go fishing.

LAKE WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Sooo…. some North Texas drivers had to take a detour a few months ago when the interchange of West Loop 820 and Jacksboro Highway was closed overnight.

Just about everyone in this part of the state has gotten used to maneuvering through construction zones and being rerouted here or there — but roadwork wasn’t the culprit this time.

(credit: Ford Performance)

On this night, the four-leaf clover interchange was closed to give professional driver Vaughn Gittin Jr. a clear road to film a drifting commercial for the Ford Mustang RTR.

The final video released by Ford shows Gittin smoking the tires as the 900-horsepower performance car growls over the road.

After completing all four curves Gittin said, “Entering a cloverleaf at maximum attack is something I’ve always wanted to do! There was nothing like the sound of the 5.0 revving out under the overpass portion as it echoed every which way.”

Ramps, straightaways, corners… the Ford Formula Drift Champion floated the 5.0-liter supercharged V8 with ease.

(credit: Ford Performance)

Using the same car last year, Gittin became the first person to drift the entire course of the Nürburgring track in Germany.

No word on exactly how long all four ramps of the North Texas highway’s cloverleaf was closed or how many sets of tires Gittin burned through.

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) — Fort Worth police are looking for a duo who stole a credit card from a vehicle at a Lake Worth Walmart last month.

At approximately 11:30 p.m. June 23, a white male and female suspect stole a credit card from a vehicle owned by two senior citizens and used it inside the store.

the male suspect (Photo credit: Fort Worth Police Department)

The male suspect has a slender build and short hair, possibly shaved. He wore a cowboy hat, and has tattoos on both hands. The female suspect has long dark curly hair below her shoulders and weighs between 160 to 180 pounds.

The female suspect (Photo credit: Fort Worth Police Department)

The duo was seen leaving in a white U-Haul pickup truck.

Anyone who recognizes these suspects is asked to call 817-392-4730.

LAKE WORTH, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) – The Texas Game Wardens are searching for the person responsible for killing an alligator and cutting off its tail on Lake Worth last week.

According to Operation Game Thief, the alligator was killed on or around August 1. Its carcass was found on Lake Worth near the mouth of the West Fork of the Trinity River.

(Credit: Operation Game Thief/Facebook)

A reward of up to $1,000 is being offered for information that leads to an arrest and conviction. Anyone with information is asked to call Operation Game Thief at 1.800.792.4263.

In Tarrant County, it’s illegal to hunt alligators outside of the spring hunting season from April 1 to June 30, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife.