Rivers in Oklahoma

Arkansas River near Ponca City

Kay County, OklahomaNWS PCYO2USGS 07148140Tulsa office

Below flood stage
3.06ftStage

Observed Tue, Sep 29, 8:00 PM CDT

Flood stage
17.00 ft
Record crest
22.26 ft2019

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood21.00 ft
Moderate flood19.00 ft
Minor flood17.00 ft
Action17.00 ft
  1. 31.00 ftnear catastrophic flooding occurs along the Arkansas River valley around Ponca City. In Ponca City, the Arkansas River overflows the old Highway 60 bridge. This is an extremely dangerous and life threatening situation.
  2. 29.00 ftthe west approach to the old Highway 60 bridge along the South Avenue extension is closed. The old Highway 60 bridge may be overtopped. This is an extremely dangerous and life threatening situation.
  3. 27.00 ftthe west approach to the old Highway 60 bridge along the South Avenue extension is closed. Very severe flooding occurs in the residential area south of South Avenue between 12th and 14th Streets. This is an extremely dangerous and life threatening situation.
  4. 25.00 ftvery serious flooding occurs in Ponca City south of South Avenue. The old Highway 60 brdige is not accessible via Pecan Road. Businesses along Lake Road are severely flooded. This is an extremely dangerous and life threatening situation.
  5. 23.00 ftserious flooding occurs in areas of Ponca City south of South Avenue between 12th and 14th Streets. The old Highway 60 bridge is not accessible via Pecan Road. Businesses along Lake Road are flooded. This is an extremely dangerous and life threatening situation.
  6. 21.00 ftin Ponca City, the west approach of the South Avenue access road to the old Highway 60 bridge is threatened. Businesses along Lake Road are threatened. The lower areas south of South Avenue between 12th and 14th Streets are inundated. This is a dangerous and life threatening situation.
  7. 19.00 ftin Ponca City, portions of the residential area south of South Avenue between 12th and 14th Streets may be flooded. Other areas along the Arkansas River outside of Ponca City may see a couple of feet of swiftly moving water.
  8. 17.00 ftwidespread lowland flooding occurs.

Crest history

18 crests on NOAA’s list since 1977.

#DateStage
1May 24, 201922.26 ft
2May 14, 199320.11 ft
3May 22, 201917.68 ft
4May 13, 201916.35 ft
5June 1, 199515.45 ft
6September 7, 198913.97 ft
7March 30, 198413.40 ft
8October 16, 198613.30 ft
9April 3, 199013.09 ft
10June 27, 197713.00 ft
11April 8, 198312.85 ft
12June 30, 198212.40 ft
13May 3, 199412.06 ft
14September 26, 198511.80 ft
15July 28, 198111.60 ft
16April 6, 198810.66 ft
17June 19, 199210.20 ft
18October 4, 19908.93 ft

Most recent crests

  • May 24, 2019: 22.26 ft
  • May 22, 2019: 17.68 ft
  • May 13, 2019: 16.35 ft
  • June 1, 1995: 15.45 ft
  • May 3, 1994: 12.06 ft
  • May 14, 1993: 20.11 ft
  • June 19, 1992: 10.20 ft
  • October 4, 1990: 8.93 ft
  • April 3, 1990: 13.09 ft
  • September 7, 1989: 13.97 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the Arkansas-Red Basin RFC. Forecasts are issued as needed during times of high water, but are not routinely available. 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.