Rivers in Connecticut

Housatonic River at Falls Village

Litchfield County, ConnecticutNWS FLVC3USGS 01199000Albany office

Below flood stage
2.27ftStage

Observed Wed, Sep 23, 5:15 AM EDT

Flood stage
7.00 ft
Record crest
19.00 ft1949

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood15.00 ft
Moderate flood10.00 ft
Minor flood7.00 ft
Action6.00 ft
  1. 19.00 ftFlood of record on January 1, 1949.
  2. 15.00 ftMajor flood stage.
  3. 10.00 ftModerate flood stage. The river reaches the edge of several sections of Route 7 north of Cornwall Bridge.
  4. 9.00 ftWater floods Riverside Road at Kent School and begins to approach buildings. Water gets close to Route 7.
  5. 8.00 ftThe water reaches Riverside Road at Kent School and floods the picnic area along Route 7 near Housatonic Meadows.
  6. 7.00 ftFlood stage. The park above Falls Village Dam begins to flood, and water reaches the fields of White Hollow Farms near Limerock Road, and is at the edge of the Housatonic Valley Regional High School fields.
  7. 5.00 ftThe river is about half bankfull.

Flood outlook

Chance of flooding, September to November

CategoryChance
Minor flooding11%
Moderate floodingUnder 5%
Major floodingUnder 5%

The three-month chances are the River Forecast Centers’ long-range flood outlook, issued September 21, 2026.

Crest history

53 crests on NOAA’s list since 1936.

#DateStage
1January 1, 194919.00 ft
2August 19, 195518.90 ft
3September 23, 193816.80 ft
4September 9, 201113.47 ft
5March 20, 193613.00 ft
6August 30, 201111.74 ft
7March 9, 201111.57 ft
8April 18, 200711.14 ft
9March 8, 201111.03 ft
10May 31, 198410.56 ft
11December 13, 200810.29 ft
12April 1, 19939.71 ft
13April 4, 20059.65 ft
14January 28, 19969.21 ft
15March 12, 20119.11 ft
16December 19, 20238.88 ft
17June 15, 20138.75 ft
18April 12, 20018.56 ft
19September 3, 20218.44 ft
20July 11, 20238.40 ft
21July 20, 20218.15 ft
22March 30, 20058.10 ft
23April 1, 20147.84 ft
24March 31, 20107.76 ft
25March 16, 20107.73 ft

Most recent crests

  • March 13, 2026: 7.20 ft
  • March 24, 2024: 7.32 ft
  • January 11, 2024: 7.12 ft
  • December 19, 2023: 8.88 ft
  • July 17, 2023: 7.15 ft
  • July 14, 2023: 7.27 ft
  • July 11, 2023: 8.40 ft
  • September 3, 2021: 8.44 ft
  • July 20, 2021: 8.15 ft
  • July 13, 2021: 7.25 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the Northeast River Forecast Center. Forecasts are issued as needed during times of high water, but are not routinely available. Gauge reading may be affected by ice. Forecast flows are unadjusted for ice.

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.