September floods up-stream from West Point Lake broke records, and now officials are looking for a record number of volunteers to help put the lake right again.

Debris forced downstream during the late September storms has pushed more debris than usual into the lake and adjacent Army Corps of Engineers’ parks and coves. Corps spokes-man David Barr said his group and the West Point Lake Coalition, which sponsors the cleanup, are looking for around 500 volunteers to show up at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at Earl Cook Park.

“Five hundred would give us a record number,” Barr said. “We need about 1,000 man hours. A half-day’s work will make a huge dent.”

Water is still high after the wet fall and a second cleanup, using pontoon boats to get to hard-to-reach areas, likely will be in March. Normally, pontoon and land sites are cleaned at the same time.

Barr said even without boats, there will be plenty to keep volunteers busy Saturday.

“Eighty percent of the debris is in the lower part of the lake,” he said. Groups will be sent to parks in those areas, as well as Southern Harbor Marina and its campgrounds.

The corps’ contractors and Georgia Department of Transportation already have done some of the cleanup and will continue after Saturday’s event. This year’s cleanup will allow for recycling of plastic, glass and aluminum.

Volunteers should plan to arrive at Earl Cook Recreation Area by 8:30 a.m. Saturday. Adjacent lakeside property and dock owners were being encouraged to take part in the cleanup effort on their own properties.

Registered groups will be provided with trash bags and removal of the full bags following the event. Property owners who are unable to carry the bags back to their property may place the filled bags on the shoreline near their docks and contact the West Point Project management office at (706) 645-2937 to provide an exact location so the corps can arrange for pickup.

Individuals or groups interested in volunteering for the cleanup day may contact Park Ranger Rocky Millenbine at (706) 645-2937 to be assigned to a park.

Individual and group volunteers still are welcome and encouraged to show up Saturday morning, officials said.