May 2011 New Madrid Floodway
Science Center Objects
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the May 2011 New Madrid Floodway breaches.
In response to dangerous flood levels near the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) activated the Birds Point-New Madrid floodway (New Madrid Floodway in USGS literature) at 10:03 pm on May 2, 2011, by detonating explosives along a stretch of the Mississippi River levee just downstream of Cairo, Illinois. The resulting inflow of water into the 130,000 acre floodway caused the Ohio river stage near Cairo to drop nearly 1/2 foot during the first hour of operation. Two additional inflow/outflow breaches were initiated at 12:40 pm on May 3 and at 2:39 pm on May 5. The USGS provided vital floodway data to the USACE and other agencies.
New Madrid Floodway - before and after 2011 breach
USGS Activities in the News:
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Corps shifts focus to East Prairie after final Birds Point breach
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Final levee breach completed in plan to stem flooding in central U.S.
The activation of the floodway, which had not occurred since 1937, provided a rare opportunity to collect a unique dataset describing a flood wave downstream from a levee breach as well as the flow through a large floodway.
Stage Data are available in the National Water Information System (NWIS).
Streamflow Measurements near the New Madrid Floodway
Select the station number below to jump to an NWIS summary of all measurements at that station.
Ohio River at Metropolis (03611500)
Mississippi River at Thebes (07022000)
Mississippi River above Cairo (370000089122601)
Ohio River at Cairo (365939089084601)
Upper Inflow Breach at Birds Point (365659089073101)
Mississippi River below Ohio confluence (365730089063001)
Middle Breach (IFOF#1, 363740089180601)
Combined Outflow (363618089251701)
Lower Outflow Breach (IFOF#2, 363454089285900)
Lower Outflow Gap (363524089302700)
Mississippi River at Tiptonville (362216089303901)
USGS Velocity Maps of the Mississippi River/Ohio River Confluence before and after the breach on May 2, 2011.
This figure shows depth-averaged velocities in feet per second on May 2, 2011 prior to the Upper Inflow Breach.
Image of New Madrid floodway depth-averaged velocities in feet per second on May 2, 2011 prior to the Uppder Inflow Breach
This figure shows depth-averaged velocities in feet per second for the uppermost 2 meters of water on May 2, 2011 prior to the Upper Inflow Breach.
Image of New Madrid floodway depth-averaged velocities in feet per second for the uppermost 2 meters of water on May 2, 2011 prior to the Upper Inflow Breach
This figure shows depth-averaged velocities in feet per second on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach.
Image of New Madrid floodway depth-averaged velocities in feet per second on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach
This figure shows depth-averaged velocities in feet per second for the uppermost 2 meters of water on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach.
Image of depth-averaged velocities in feet per second for the uppermost 2 meters of water on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach
This figure shows depth-averaged velocities in feet per second on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach, including velocity measurements along the breach.
Image of depth-averaged velocities in feet per second on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach
This figure shows depth-averaged velocities in feet per second for the uppermost 2 meters of water on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach, including velocity measurements along the breach.
Image of New Madrid floodway depth-averaged velocities in feet per second for the uppermost 2 meters of water on May 3, 2011 following the Upper Inflow Breach
Timeline for Flood Crests map
New Madrid floodway map shows flood crest predictions by the National Weather Service as of Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Water Quality Measurements are available in NWIS.
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Date published: February 28, 2019Status: ActiveHistorical Flooding
The USGS provides practical, unbiased information about the Nation's rivers and streams that is crucial in mitigating hazards associated with floods. This site provides information about the USGS activities, data, and services provided during regional high-flow events, such as hurricanes or multi-state flooding events. The USGS response to these events is typically managed by the National...
Attribution: Water Resources, Floods and Droughts
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Date published: February 26, 2019Status: CompletedTropical Storm Lee
During and after Tropical Storm Lee, the USGS made stream flow measurements, sampled suspended sediment, and repaired gages in Connecticut, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and other states in the region.
Attribution: Water Resources, Floods and Droughts -
Date published: February 26, 2019Status: CompletedHurricane Irene
Hurricane Irene, peaking as a Category 3 hurricane, battered Carribean Islands and U.S. states all along the eastern seaboard from South Carolina to Maine on August 21-29, 2011.
Attribution: Water Resources, Floods and Droughts -
Date published: February 25, 2019Status: Completed2011 - The Year of the Flood
2011 proved to be another record-breaking flood year in the United States. USGS Water Science Center personnel from North Dakota to Louisiana measured springtime floods on the Red River of the North, the Ohio River, the Mississippi River, and many tributaries. The Missouri River and its tributaries saw record-breaking snow-melt runoff through the summer, followed closely by Hurricane Irene and...
Attribution: Water Resources, Floods and Droughts -
Date published: February 25, 2019Status: CompletedSummer 2011 Missouri River Basin flood
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the 2011 Missouri River Basin Flood resulting from higher-than-average snowmelt runoff combined with heavy spring rains.
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Date published: February 25, 2019Status: CompletedSpring/Summer 2011 Mississippi River Basin Floods
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the Spring/Summer 2011 floods throughout the Mississippi River Basin.
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Date published: February 25, 2019Status: CompletedMay 2011 Louisiana flood
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the May 2011 flood in Louisiana, including additional real-time monitoring for the Morganza and Bonnet Carre Spillways which were opened to release floodwaters into the Mississippi River.
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Date published: February 25, 2019Status: CompletedMay 2011 Memphis, Tennessee Flood
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the May 2011 flood in Memphis, Tennessee, including deploying emergency real-time surface-water stage gages at critical locations in Shelby County.
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Date published: February 25, 2019Status: CompletedApril 2011 Arkansas Flood
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the April 2011 Arkansas Flood.
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Date published: February 25, 2019Status: CompletedApril 2011 North Dakota Flood
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the April 2011 North Dakota Flood resulting from sudden winter snowmelt due to warmer-than-expected temperatures and rain.
Assessment of floodplain vulnerability during extreme Mississippi River flood 2011
Regional change in the variability and magnitude of flooding could be a major consequence of future global climate change. Extreme floods have the capacity to rapidly transform landscapes and expose landscape vulnerabilities through highly variable spatial patterns of inundation, erosion, and deposition. We use the historic activation of the Birds...
Goodwell, Allison E.; Zhu, Zhenduo; Dutta, Debsunder; Greenberg, Jonathan A.; Kumar, Praveen; Garcia, Marcelo H.; Rhoads, Bruce L.; Holmes, Robert R.; Parker, Gary; Berretta, David P.; Jacobson, Robert B.
2011 floods of the central United States
The Central United States experienced record-setting flooding during 2011, with floods that extended from headwater streams in the Rocky Mountains, to transboundary rivers in the upper Midwest and Northern Plains, to the deep and wide sand-bedded lower Mississippi River. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), as part of its mission, collected...
