How can I obtain river forecasts (flood forecasts)?
River forecasts (flood forecasts) are made by the National Weather Service River Forecast Centers and released through local Weather Service Offices. The NOAA website has a map showing the location of the forecast centers, their areas of responsibility, and the location of the gages they use.
The vast majority of current streamflow data used for these forecasts is obtained from U.S. Geological Survey streamgaging stations, but the USGS has no other responsibility or authority for making forecasts.
Learn more: Where can I find flood maps?
Related Content
Is there a way to get alerts about streamflow conditions?
Where can I get real-time and historical streamflow information?
How do we benefit from USGS streamgages?
Where can I find flood maps?
How are floods predicted?
What are the two types of floods?
Guidelines for determining flood flow frequency—Bulletin 17C
Accurate estimates of flood frequency and magnitude are a key component of any effective nationwide flood risk management and flood damage abatement program. In addition to accuracy, methods for estimating flood risk must be uniformly and consistently applied because management of the Nation’s water and related land resources is a collaborative...
England, John F.; Cohn, Timothy A.; Faber, Beth A.; Stedinger, Jery R.; Thomas, Wilbert O.; Veilleux, Andrea G.; Kiang, Julie E.; Mason,, Robert R.
Discharge measurements at gaging stations
The techniques and standards for making discharge measurements at streamflow gaging stations are described in this publication. The vertical axis rotating-element current meter, principally the Price current meter, has been traditionally used for most measurements of discharge; however, advancements in acoustic technology have led to important...
Turnipseed, D. Phil; Sauer, Vernon B.
How does a U.S. Geological Survey streamgage work?
Information on the flow of rivers and streams is a vital national asset that safeguards lives, protects property, and ensures adequate water supplies for the future. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) operates a network of more than 9,000 streamgages nationwide with more than 500 in Texas.
Lurry, Dee L.
From the River to You: USGS Real-Time Streamflow Information...from the National Streamflow Information Program
This Fact Sheet is one in a series that highlights information or recent research findings from the USGS National Streamflow Information Program (NSIP). The investigations and scientific results reported in this series require a nationally consistent streamgaging network with stable long-term monitoring sites and a rigorous program of data,...
Nielsen, Joseph P.; Norris, J. Michael
The world's largest floods, past and present: Their causes and magnitudes
Floods are among the most powerful forces on earth. Human societies worldwide have lived and died with floods from the very beginning, spawning a prominent role for floods within legends, religions, and history. Inspired by such accounts, geologists, hydrologists, and historians have studied the role of floods on humanity and its supporting...
O'Connor, Jim E.; Costa, John E.
Large floods in the United States: where they happen and why
The spatial distribution of large gaged floods throughout the United States shows that the locations of most of the largest flows are related to specific combinations of regional climatology, topography, and basin size. Key factors include the general northward trend of decreasing atmospheric moisture, proximity to oceanic moisture sources such as...
O'Connor, Jim E.; Costa, John E.
The stream-gaging program of the U.S. Geological Survey
The U.S. Geological Survey stream-gaging program provides streamflow data for a variety of purposes. The uses of streamflow data are described, and the growth of the stream-gaging program is related to legislation and the need to manage the Nation's water resources more effectively. A brief description is provided of the data-collection processes...
Wahl, Kenneth L.; Thomas, Wilbert O.; Hirsch, Robert M.
USGS Science – Leading the Way for Preparedness
Learn About USGS Hazards Science and More About National Preparedness Month: The very nature of natural hazards means that they have the potential to impact a majority of Americans every year. USGS science provides part of the foundation for emergency preparedness whenever and wherever disaster strikes.
Stormy weather: How the USGS goes to work monitoring its effects
Atmospheric rivers are a global weather phenomenon that can bring large amounts of rain or snow to the U.S. West Coast each year. These rivers of wet air form over the Pacific Ocean near Hawaiʻi and pick up large amounts of moisture from the tropics and on their way to the West Coast. This moisture is carried in narrow bands across the Pacific Ocean to California, Oregon, Washington and Nevada.
The Vital Nature of Streamgaging
Gary Moore spent the last three days of 2015 stacking hefty bags of sand in front of a fellow church member’s brick home. With only 1,000 feet between the house and the swelling Mississippi and Meramec Rivers, Moore and other volunteers worked quickly, in frigid temperatures, to assemble a 10-foot high, 1,000-foot-long sandbag wall to ward off floodwaters.
Fighting the Floods
The USGS response to the Louisiana floods is part of the larger USGS flood science mission...
Follow Your Stream to Learn About Water
Explore America's streams and rivers from your computer or mobile device.
Stay Current on Your Rivers with USGS WaterNow
For the first time, anyone can find out the current conditions on thousands of rivers and streams across the country, right from their phone, using USGS' latest system WaterNow.WaterNow makes the water conditions monitored by more than 16,000 streamgages and other sites across the country available via text or email.
USGS Measures Historic Flooding in eastern Texas
A USGS field crew takes flood measurements on the Sabine River on March 12 near Bon Weir, Texas. USGS scientists on the boat included Jeff East, Jimmy Hopkins, and Jody Avant.
The Anatomy of Floods: The Causes and Development of 2011's Epic Flood Events
Flooding costs the United States more than $7 billion per year and claims more than 90 lives annually. During the Spring and Summer of 2011, the central U.S. experienced epic flooding, while Hurricane Irene followed by Tropical Storm Lee caused severe flooding in the east and northeastern U.S, setting numerous flood records at USGS streamgages. Dr. Robert Holmes discusses
Streamgages: The Silent Superhero
Whether you drink water from your tap, use electricity or canoe down your local river, chances are you benefit from USGS streamgage information. So what is a streamgage and what does it do for you? This CoreCast episode gives you the inside scoop on your silent superhero.
Transcript and captions available soon.
Measuring streamflow using ADCP during flooding
Measuring streamflow using ADCP during flooding in January 2017, Carson River, Nevada.
Floodplain inundated with water
Floodplain inundated with water
3DEP, flood inundation maps
USGS flood-inundation maps for the Saluda River near Greenville, South Carolina. A lidar-derived elevation model was used to aid in hydraulic modeling to create these maps.
Flooding, Memphis TN, May 10, 2011.
Flooding in the Memphis, Tennesse area, May 10, 2011. (Credit, Jeff Roberson, AP)