Rivers in South Dakota

West Fork Vermillion River near Parker

Turner County, South DakotaNWS PKRS2USGS 06478690Sioux Falls office

Below flood stage
1.41ftStage

Observed Sun, Sep 27, 6:15 AM CDT

Flood stage
9.00 ft
Record crest
15.51 ft2024

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood12.00 ft
Moderate flood10.00 ft
Minor flood9.00 ft
Action8.00 ft
  1. 15.50 ftThe bridge on Highway 44 just northwest of Parker is overtopped.
  2. 14.00 ftThe bridge on 274th Street at the gage is overtopped.
  3. 13.50 ftThe bridge on 275th over the West Fork of the river east of Parker is overtopped. Water reaches the bottom of the bridge on Highway 44 northwest of Parker.
  4. 13.00 ft275th St east of Parker is flooded. The bridges on 453rd and 454th north of Parker are both overtopped.
  5. 12.00 ftHighway 44 begins to flood as do numerous county and township roads. Thunder Valley drag strip starts to see flooding of fields and grandstand areas.
  6. 11.50 ft456th Ave and 276th St east of Parker will be flooded.
  7. 11.00 ftMajor agricultural flooding begins, and a few county and township roads will begin to flood, including Thunder Valley Ave near the gage site.
  8. 10.00 ftThe lowest portion of 453rd and W 6th St on the north side of Parker may flood. Moderate flooding of agricultural land begins.
  9. 9.00 ftMinor flooding of agricultural land begins and the lowest portion of 274th near the gage site may begin to flood.
  10. 8.00 ftSome flooding of the lowest lying banks and ditches is possible.

Flood outlook

Chance of flooding, September to November

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

The three-month chances are the River Forecast Centers’ long-range flood outlook, issued September 23, 2026.

Crest history

65 crests on NOAA’s list since 1962.

#DateStage
1June 22, 202415.51 ft
2May 8, 199313.14 ft
3September 13, 201913.08 ft
4June 16, 198412.57 ft
5April 19, 199512.35 ft
6March 28, 196212.33 ft
7March 14, 201912.32 ft
8April 4, 196912.30 ft
9July 30, 201012.29 ft
10April 23, 200112.22 ft
11May 6, 200712.05 ft
12June 7, 200811.85 ft
13March 27, 199711.63 ft
14June 21, 201811.50 ft
15March 22, 197910.81 ft
16September 20, 198610.78 ft
17March 7, 198310.77 ft
18March 17, 201110.72 ft
19March 4, 197010.20 ft
20March 5, 199410.18 ft
21March 19, 197810.15 ft
22June 26, 200310.10 ft
23March 25, 19879.92 ft
24March 16, 19859.79 ft
25July 10, 20098.99 ft

Most recent crests

  • August 7, 2025: 3.54 ft
  • June 22, 2024: 15.51 ft
  • April 2, 2023: 6.05 ft
  • May 13, 2022: 2.32 ft
  • March 25, 2021: 1.35 ft
  • March 5, 2020: 6.54 ft
  • September 13, 2019: 13.08 ft
  • March 14, 2019: 12.32 ft
  • June 21, 2018: 11.50 ft
  • August 26, 2017: 3.56 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the Missouri Basin River Forecast Center. 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 48 hours into the future from the forecast issuance time. 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. Gauge reading may be affected by 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.