Rivers in Arkansas
Red River at Fulton
Below flood stage
-2.54ftStage
Observed Tue, Sep 22, 2:15 AM CDT
- Flood stage
- 27.00 ft
- Forecast crest
- -2.50 ftTue, Sep 22, 7:00 AM CDT
- Record crest
- 37.40 ft1945
Flood stages and impacts
| Category | Stage |
|---|---|
| Major flood | 32.50 ft |
| Moderate flood | 30.00 ft |
| Minor flood | 27.00 ft |
| Action | 25.00 ft |
- 37.50 ftRecord flooding with tens of thousands acres inundated. The town of Fulton is flooded and evacuated at this point.
- 36.50 ftOverflow and topping of levees both upstream and downstream from Fulton takes place.
- 36.00 ftU.S. highway 67 is flooded and closed at Fulton. Thousands of acres of farmland are flooded.
- 32.00 ftFarmers and ranchers highly advised to evacuate cattle and machinery to higher ground in the Little River valley below Millwood Lake to the confluence of the Little and Red rivers.
- 30.00 ftConsiderable lowland flooding will take place. Ranchers advised to evacuate livestock and equipment away from the river. Ranchers should move cattle and equipment in the Little River area from below Millwood Lake to its confluence with the Red River just west of Fulton.
- 29.00 ftLowland flooding will continue to decrease and end between the levees.
- 28.00 ftConsiderable flooding will increase in the area between the levees. Expect backwater flooding from the Red River up through the Yellow Creek tributary to McNab, Arkansas.
- 27.00 ftSlight overflow begins in the area between the levees at Fulton but this flooding is considered minor at this point.
Flood outlook
Chance of flooding, September to November
| Category | Chance |
|---|---|
| Minor flooding | Under 5% |
| Moderate flooding | Under 5% |
| Major flooding | Under 5% |
The three-month chances are the River Forecast Centers’ long-range flood outlook, issued September 21, 2026.
Crest history
42 crests on NOAA’s list since 1871.
| # | Date | Stage |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 2, 1945 | 37.40 ft |
| 2 | February 24, 1938 | 36.40 ft |
| 3 | July 17, 1876 | 35.80 ft |
| 4 | April 24, 1927 | 35.00 ft |
| 5 | May 23, 1892 | 34.90 ft |
| 6 | June 24, 1935 | 34.80 ft |
| 7 | May 12, 1990 | 34.30 ft |
| 8 | May 26, 1935 | 34.10 ft |
| 9 | May 3, 1890 | 34.00 ft |
| 10 | June 2, 1908 | 33.95 ft |
| 11 | May 2, 1915 | 33.94 ft |
| 12 | May 19, 1920 | 33.70 ft |
| 13 | May 2, 1942 | 33.30 ft |
| 14 | March 24, 1894 | 33.00 ft |
| 15 | December 12, 1913 | 32.80 ft |
| 16 | May 22, 1930 | 32.50 ft |
| 17 | November 30, 1902 | 32.20 ft |
| 18 | June 5, 2015 | 32.12 ft |
| 19 | January 31, 1949 | 32.03 ft |
| 20 | February 4, 1916 | 31.95 ft |
| 21 | May 7, 1888 | 31.80 ft |
| 22 | June 14, 1904 | 31.66 ft |
| 23 | January 28, 1932 | 31.60 ft |
| 24 | July 18, 1895 | 31.55 ft |
| 25 | June 2, 1905 | 31.50 ft |
Most recent crests
- June 5, 2015: 32.12 ft
- May 12, 1990: 34.30 ft
- May 17, 1982: 22.70 ft
- November 4, 1981: 22.07 ft
- April 28, 1973: 23.00 ft
- May 3, 1966: 25.60 ft
- June 9, 1957: 31.12 ft
- May 1, 1957: 30.52 ft
- January 31, 1949: 32.03 ft
- April 2, 1945: 37.40 ft
Nearby
Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.
What this means
Forecasts by the Arkansas-Red Basin RFC. Forecasts are issued routinely year-round. River forecasts for this location take into account past precipitation and the precipitation amounts expected approximately 24 hours into the future from the forecast issuance time.
Sources
Stage, flood stages, impacts and crest history from NOAA’s National Water Prediction Service. Streamflow and the daily record from the U.S. Geological Survey.