UPPER AUGUSTA TOWNSHIP -- A sign of summer in central Pennsylvania is the inflation of the Fabridam and the creation of Lake Augusta on the Susquehanna River.
Crews started to inflate the 2,100 foot the Adam T. Bower Memorial Dam, aka "The Fabridam," located just below the west and main branches of the Susquehanna River near Sunbury.
Once the Fabridam is raised, it creates Lake Augusta, which is used for boating and recreation.
"Once the dam's fully inflated and the boats get out there, some days it's really rough to get out there and actually have a good time because you have so many boats out there, but it's always fun," Doug Feltman said.
This is one of the world's longest inflatable dams.
"It helps with boaters in the area. They can get their boats out on the lake and it brings out a lot of people into the area and helps the local economy," Tim Wert said.
Campers at Fantasy Island Campground near Sunbury spend a lot of time on the water. Doug Feltman camps there all summer and enjoys swimming in Lake Augusta.
"I actually just checked the graph and it shows that within the next three days, it's going to go up about two feet and two feet of water is a lot to help with the boating situation," Feltman said.
Most of the people Newswatch 16 spoke with said seeing the Fabridam go up is a sign of summer to them.
"Here in Sunbury, you know it's summertime and spring when the Fabridam finally gets blown up," Rob Johnson said.
"When the dam goes up, it means a lot of activity is going to happen here," Feltman said.
Officials expect the Fabridam to be fully inflated by next week and the docks to be installed by May 16 at Shikellamy State Park.
