CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Lake Corpus Christi marked a disturbing milestone Thursday, dropping below 10% of capacity for the first time ever.

As of Thursday morning, the lake sat at 9.9% of capacity. Choke Canyon Reservoir is in worse condition, with its water level at 8.3% of capacity. The combined capacity of Choke Canyon and Lake Corpus Christi stands at 8.7%.

The milestone comes as City Manager Peter Zanoni holds meetings with Corpus Christi water and city leaders to formulate a plan on how a Level 1 water emergency will be implemented.

The city is currently under Stage 3 water restrictions. Under Stage 3, the city has implemented restrictions that achieve a 15% or greater reduction in daily water use.

A Level 1 water emergency would require a 25% reduction in water use.