Rivers in Mississippi

Coldwater River near Sarah

Tunica County, MississippiNWS SARM6USGS 07279700Memphis office

Below flood stage
-1.14ftStage

Observed Thu, Sep 24, 2:00 AM CDT

Flood stage
18.00 ft
Forecast crest
-1.20 ftThu, Sep 24, 7:00 AM CDT
Record crest
25.00 ft1973

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood28.00 ft
Moderate flood24.00 ft
Minor flood18.00 ft
Action17.00 ft
  1. 31.50 ftFlood waters overtop the levee system on the right bank. Evacuations become necessary.
  2. 29.00 ftRoads east of the river between the river and the railroad tracks are flooded and may be impassable.
  3. 27.00 ftMany homes and roads are flooding.
  4. 23.00 ftFlooding is occurring on the left bank. Mainly agricultural land is flooded. The levee system protects the right bank from flooding.
  5. 20.00 ftFarmland flooding is widespread.
  6. 18.00 ftLow-lying farmland near the river begins to flood.

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 16, 2026.

Crest history

21 crests on NOAA’s list since 1973.

#DateStage
1April 20, 197325.00 ft
2December 20, 200223.92 ft
3May 18, 200323.55 ft
4April 6, 202523.54 ft
5May 3, 198423.40 ft
6February 24, 201922.76 ft
7December 29, 202422.71 ft
8February 5, 200422.62 ft
9January 25, 200422.33 ft
10March 2, 199722.26 ft
11May 4, 200221.42 ft
12December 9, 198621.40 ft
13March 16, 202520.93 ft
14April 12, 200520.51 ft
15January 23, 200620.24 ft
16January 28, 199420.06 ft
17June 19, 202520.05 ft
18February 16, 202519.46 ft
19December 23, 201718.92 ft
20February 22, 200318.91 ft
21March 3, 201412.61 ft

Most recent crests

  • June 19, 2025: 20.05 ft
  • April 6, 2025: 23.54 ft
  • March 16, 2025: 20.93 ft
  • February 16, 2025: 19.46 ft
  • December 29, 2024: 22.71 ft
  • February 24, 2019: 22.76 ft
  • December 23, 2017: 18.92 ft
  • March 3, 2014: 12.61 ft
  • January 23, 2006: 20.24 ft
  • April 12, 2005: 20.51 ft

Nearby

Upstream, downstream and the gauges around this one.

What this means

Forecasts by the Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center. Forecasts are issued routinely year-round. 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.