Hazardous conditions right now on the Boise River are prompting the Boise Fire Department to implore the public to stay away from the river for recreation until an official opening date is set.
Right now it's flowing at 5,000 cold, fast, cubic feet per second. One rule of thumb estimation for visualizing 5,000 CFS waterflow is to imagine 5,000 basketballs flying by you, per second.
Normal recreation levels are several hundred feet per second.
"With increased flows, the Boise River is extremely dangerous right now," said Paul Roberts, Boise Fire Department's Division Chief for Special Operations. "It just isn't safe to be on the river at this time."
