Rivers in Indiana

East Fork White River at Rivervale

Lawrence County, IndianaNWS BEDI3USGS 03371500Indianapolis office

Below flood stage
4.74ftStage

Observed Wed, Sep 23, 6:30 AM EDT

Flood stage
20.00 ft
Forecast crest
4.80 ftWed, Sep 23, 8:00 AM EDT
Record crest
47.60 ft1913

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood35.00 ft
Moderate flood30.00 ft
Minor flood20.00 ft
Action15.00 ft
  1. 45.00 ftNear or a record flood is in progress. Entire county flood plain is under water. County bridge where river gage is located is underwater.
  2. 40.00 ftCounty bridge where river gage is located is threatened. Flood waters threaten automated river readings and gage site.
  3. 37.70 ftJanuary 2005 is the highest level for the period of record of this gage site. Portions of nearly 60 county and private roads are impassable, some by several feet of water. Numerous evacuations of local river communities. Many residents of these areas must park on high ground and boat out. January 2005 flood was the highest flood for Lawrence County since January 1937.
  4. 36.00 ftMajor flood is in progress. Many evacuations from residential areas in flood plain are necessary. Portions of nearly 60 county and private roads are impassable, many by several feet of water. Many local river residents must park on high ground and boat out. Extensive damage occurs to local roads.
  5. 35.00 ftUnusual flood is in progress with possibly a few local evacuations needed.
  6. 32.00 ftSome evacuations in the Fort Ritner area are necessary. Flooding of low areas in Fort Ritner is in progress. Backwater floods county roads at some distance from river.
  7. 30.00 ftSome evacuations may occur at this level from river cabins. Water surrounds but does not flood rural agricultural families. This includes the Fort Ritner, Lawrenceport, Bono and Buddha areas. River bridge cannot be seen from northside approach to site.
  8. 29.90 ftDuring the March 2008 flood, the Bedford Times reported the following roads remained closed: Peerless Road, Lawrenceport Tunnelton Road, Pumphouse Road, SR 450, Stumphole Bridge Road, Mill Creek Road, Earl Road, Dillon Road, River Road and Rager Road.
  9. 28.00 ftExtensive river flooding in progress. Residential areas near the river begin to flood. The county bridge locally known as the Buddha bypass bridge becomes inaccessible. Several local roads are flooded including Duncan Rd/Tunnelton Rd, Fort Ritner at the underpass and post office, Old Buddha Rd, Tunnelton Rd at the railroad crossing and West Sparksville Bridge Rd.
  10. 25.00 ftAll county roads across or located in the East Fork White River flood plain flood. Flooding of agricultural land becomes extensive. The county road on northside of gage floods and gage may be inaccessible except by boat. Local residents in nearby river cabins must park on higher grounds.
  11. 24.99 ftDuring the late March 2008 flood, the Bedford Times reported the following county roads still under water: River Road, Bartlettsville Road by the bridge and in the bottoms, Judah-Logan Road by the bridge, the gravel part of Logan Bottoms, Donica Church Road between Logan Bottoms and the hill, Peerless Road by Mica Metals, Little Salt Creek Run, Stumphole Bridge Road near SR 450, Huron-Williams Road, Lawrenceport Road, Rivervale Road and Earl Road.
  12. 22.00 ftA few local county roads begin to flood and are impassable. These include Buddha Road south of the gage and Lawrenceport Road. All local roads across the East Fork White River are threatened by high water, and some are closed. Flooding of agricultural lands in Lawrence County is in progress.
  13. 20.50 ftLawrenceport Road just east of Lawrenceport and on the south side of river begins to flood around this level. During typical floods in this area this portion of the road can be flooded by 5 to more than 10 feet of water. During the January 2005 flood this area would have been near the "bottom" of the river, underwater by nearly 17 feet. In the Great March 1913 flood, more than 25 feet of water would have covered this location.
  14. 20.00 ftLowest agricultural lands begin to flood near Rivervale.
  15. 17.50 ftWhite River Road south of Fort Ritner may be passable by high clearance vehicles. Driving through flood waters is not recommended.
  16. 13.00 ftLowland flooding possible in eastern Lawrence County. Portions of White River Road south of Fort Ritner may begin to flood.
  17. 10.00 ftBanks begin to overflow.

Flood outlook

Chance of flooding, September to November

CategoryChance
Minor flooding18%
Moderate floodingUnder 5%
Major floodingUnder 5%

The three-month chances are the River Forecast Centers’ long-range flood outlook, issued September 22, 2026.

Crest history

322 crests on NOAA’s list since 1913.

#DateStage
1March 29, 191347.60 ft
2January 24, 193738.00 ft
3January 9, 200537.84 ft
4April 9, 202537.08 ft
5May 1, 199636.32 ft
6May 11, 196135.97 ft
7March 12, 196435.22 ft
8January 25, 195934.87 ft
9March 22, 200834.66 ft
10June 10, 200834.41 ft
11March 15, 200634.39 ft
12May 27, 196833.89 ft
13March 9, 194533.75 ft
14January 8, 195033.08 ft
15March 8, 202633.08 ft
16April 25, 201133.07 ft
17January 8, 194932.90 ft
18January 8, 200432.76 ft
19May 16, 200232.73 ft
20November 19, 199332.51 ft
21February 11, 201932.35 ft
22January 3, 199132.34 ft
23July 18, 201532.21 ft
24March 22, 194332.18 ft
25May 20, 199032.17 ft

Most recent crests

  • August 20, 2026: 20.79 ft
  • May 24, 2026: 27.38 ft
  • March 8, 2026: 33.08 ft
  • April 9, 2025: 37.08 ft
  • March 21, 2025: 20.51 ft
  • February 20, 2025: 24.35 ft
  • April 16, 2024: 22.12 ft
  • April 9, 2023: 20.44 ft
  • March 29, 2023: 29.21 ft
  • March 29, 2023: 29.21 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the Ohio River Forecast Center. Forecasts are issued routinely year-round.

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.