Rivers in Iowa

Middle River near Indianola

Warren County, IowaNWS IDNI4USGS 05486490Des Moines office

Below flood stage
12.76ftStage

Observed Sat, Sep 26, 9:15 PM CDT

Flood stage
23.00 ft
Record crest
25.55 ft2008

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood28.00 ft
Moderate flood26.00 ft
Minor flood23.00 ft
Action19.00 ft
  1. 27.00 ftWater threatens multiple county bridges. Widespread agricultural flooding occurs.
  2. 26.00 ftWater approaches the underside of the US 65/69 overpass.
  3. 25.00 ftWater affects parts of Hwy G24.
  4. 24.00 ftWater reaches the south shoulder of Hwy G24 and affects numerous county gravel roads in the area.
  5. 22.00 ftWidespread agricultural flooding occurs.
  6. 20.00 ftWater affects several rural county roads. Rd closures are possible near creeks adjoining the river.
  7. 19.00 ftWater affects agricultural land.

Flood outlook

Chance of flooding, September to November

CategoryChance
Minor flooding6%
Moderate floodingUnder 5%
Major floodingUnder 5%

The three-month chances are the River Forecast Centers’ long-range flood outlook, issued September 25, 2026.

Crest history

92 crests on NOAA’s list since 1940.

#DateStage
1June 6, 200825.55 ft
2June 9, 197425.33 ft
3March 13, 201925.19 ft
4July 29, 201524.90 ft
5September 10, 201424.60 ft
6June 10, 201124.08 ft
7August 27, 198723.79 ft
8June 13, 194723.59 ft
9December 14, 201523.49 ft
10September 16, 199223.23 ft
11August 26, 197723.04 ft
12June 17, 199023.03 ft
13July 20, 201023.01 ft
14March 14, 201922.97 ft
15July 4, 198122.78 ft
16February 2, 197322.77 ft
17April 18, 201322.76 ft
18May 10, 199622.71 ft
19April 27, 200922.64 ft
20April 24, 197622.46 ft
21May 7, 200722.44 ft
22July 7, 199822.27 ft
23April 19, 199122.27 ft
24July 16, 198222.21 ft
25October 2, 201921.94 ft

Most recent crests

  • August 7, 2025: 20.54 ft
  • May 22, 2024: 18.80 ft
  • April 21, 2023: 12.09 ft
  • June 6, 2022: 16.54 ft
  • July 10, 2021: 15.86 ft
  • October 2, 2019: 21.94 ft
  • March 14, 2019: 22.97 ft
  • March 13, 2019: 25.19 ft
  • September 4, 2018: 18.10 ft
  • April 16, 2017: 16.49 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the North Central River Forecast Center. Forecasts are issued as needed during times of high water, but are not routinely available.

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.