Rivers in New Jersey

Passaic River at Little Falls

Passaic County, New JerseyNWS LTFN4USGS 01389500Mount Holly office

Below flood stage
1.60ftStage

Observed Wed, Sep 23, 3:30 AM EDT

Flood stage
7.00 ft
Forecast crest
1.50 ftWed, Sep 23, 8:00 AM EDT
Record crest
17.50 ft1903

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood9.00 ft
Moderate flood8.00 ft
Minor flood7.00 ft
Action6.50 ft
  1. 12.00 ftWagaraw Road in Hawthorne, between Lafayette Avenue and Lincoln Avenue, is closed. Passaic Avenue, Schoon Avenue and Vincent Street are also closed. Homes and businesses flood.
  2. 11.50 ftTyler Street, Shady Street, Arch Street, Lowe Street, Wood Street, and Bleeker Street in Paterson are closed due to flooding.
  3. 11.00 ftThe West Broadway Bridge in Paterson is subject to closures.
  4. 10.50 ftBusinesses along Route 46 in Wayne begin to flood. Route 23 floods. The Willowbrook Mall experiences flooding. Haledon Avenue bridge in Paterson is subject to closures. Also in Paterson, portions of Straight Street, Union Avenue, West Broadway, Ryle Avenue, East Main Street, North Main Street, and Haledon Avenue are also subject to closures due to flooding.
  5. 10.00 ftWagaraw Road in Hawthorne is closed. Homes and businesses in Hawthorne, directly along the river, begin to flood. Water begins to flow over the Temple Street bridge in Paterson.
  6. 9.50 ftRoute 46 in Wayne is subject to closures. Riverside Drive in Wayne floods. Flooding in Little Falls worsens as homes on William Street and Zeliff Avenue take on water. Arch Street and Temple Street bridges in Paterson are subject to closures. Also in Paterson, portions of Watson Street, Hillman Street, Bergen Street, east Holsman Street, North 1st Street, Fifth Avenue, Sixth Avenue, and Goodwin Street are also subject to closures due to flooding.
  7. 9.00 ftWidespread flooding occurs throughout Lincoln Park and Wayne with many evacuations. In Paterson, portions of River Street, Presidential Boulevard, Bridge Street, Tyler Street, Totowa Avenue and Mclean Boulevard are flooded.
  8. 8.50 ftWidespread flooding occurs in Fairfield.
  9. 8.00 ftFlooding occurs in the "Old" Wayne area of Wayne. The recycling center and Wagaraw Road ball field complex in Hawthorne begins to experience flooding.
  10. 7.00 ftMinor flooding begins in Lincoln Park, Wayne and Little Falls.
  11. 6.50 ftLow lying areas in the vicinity of Two Bridges in Wayne are flooded. The lower end of Bergen Street in Paterson, closest to the river, begins to flood.
  12. 6.00 ftPortions of Hoffman Grove in Wayne sustain some nuisance flooding.
  13. 5.50 ftThe lower end of East-Holsman Street in Paterson, closest to the river, begins to flood.

Flood outlook

Chance of flooding, September to November

CategoryChance
Minor flooding27%
Moderate flooding11%
Major flooding9%

The three-month chances are the River Forecast Centers’ long-range flood outlook, issued August 28, 2026.

Crest history

48 crests on NOAA’s list since 1903.

#DateStage
1October 10, 190317.50 ft
2August 30, 201114.19 ft
3April 7, 198412.91 ft
4April 18, 200711.88 ft
5March 16, 201011.87 ft
6March 13, 201111.81 ft
7September 9, 201111.05 ft
8May 31, 196810.73 ft
9December 20, 202310.29 ft
10April 4, 200510.11 ft
11June 1, 198410.08 ft
12September 18, 19999.84 ft
13October 18, 19559.45 ft
14February 5, 19739.45 ft
15June 25, 19729.45 ft
16May 19, 19899.44 ft
17September 4, 20219.30 ft
18April 6, 19879.29 ft
19October 14, 20059.23 ft
20January 27, 19799.21 ft
21March 29, 19789.18 ft
22April 19, 20119.02 ft
23March 22, 19839.00 ft
24December 15, 19838.99 ft
25March 9, 20118.98 ft

Most recent crests

  • January 15, 2024: 8.56 ft
  • December 30, 2023: 7.47 ft
  • December 20, 2023: 10.29 ft
  • April 10, 2022: 7.44 ft
  • September 4, 2021: 9.30 ft
  • December 23, 2018: 7.37 ft
  • November 28, 2018: 7.18 ft
  • September 9, 2011: 11.05 ft
  • August 30, 2011: 14.19 ft
  • April 19, 2011: 9.02 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center. Forecasts are issued routinely year-round. Gauge reading affected by reservoir operations.

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.