Total solar eclipse draws visitors to multiple reservoirs across
Ashley Ritenour, a park ranger for the Michael J. Kirwan Dam and reservoir, looks toward the lake before the start of the solar eclipse in Ravenna, Ohio, April 8, 2024. The Michael J. Kirwan Dam is one of 16 reservoirs managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. The Pittsburgh District has a total of seven reservoirs located within the solar eclipse’s path of totality in 2024. Hundreds of visitors came to the reservoirs at various locations, watching from near the dams or at campgrounds. Some visitors lived locally and did not have to travel far, while others drove hours to the nearest reservoir to watch the historic event. Seven reservoirs across the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District were located beneath the path of the solar eclipse’s totality. The locations included Michael J. Kirwan Dam in Ravenna, Ohio; Berlin Lake Dam in Deerfield Township, Ohio; Mosquito Creek Lake in Cortland, Ohio; Shenango River Lake in Hermitage, Pennsylvania; Woodcock Creek Lake in Saegertown, Pennsylvania; Union City Dam in Waterford, Pennsylvania; and the Allegheny Reservoir which stretches across northwestern Pennsylvania into New York. Since the founding of the United States in 1776, there have been 21 total solar eclipses visible from the continental U.S. The next total solar eclipse visible from North America will be Aug. 22, 2044, over North Dakota and Montana. Pittsburgh District’s reservoirs are designed for flood risk reduction and provide waterflow to navigable waterways, but they are also popular recreational destinations for fishing, water sports and enjoying the outdoors. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District photo by Michel Sauret)