Rivers in South Dakota

Cheyenne River near Wasta

Pennington County, South DakotaNWS WASS2USGS 06423500Rapid City office

Below flood stage
1.04ftStage

Observed Tue, Sep 22, 3:30 PM MDT

Flood stage
13.00 ft
Record crest
18.00 ft1920

Open the live map with the river flood outlook

Flood stages and impacts

CategoryStage
Major flood16.00 ft
Moderate flood15.00 ft
Minor flood13.00 ft
Action11.00 ft
  1. 18.00 ftNear record flooding.
  2. 17.00 ftExtensive flooding along the Cheyenne River with inundation of structures and roads.
  3. 16.00 ftFlooding of agricultural land around Wasta. Some inundation of structures and roads are possible.
  4. 15.30 ftWater reaches the lower portion of the Jensen Road Bridge.
  5. 14.00 ftWater may cover the parking lot of the westbound I-90 rest area. Widespread flooding of agricultural land.
  6. 13.50 ftWater may begin to affect the railbed of the nearby railroad bridge.
  7. 13.00 ftWater may begin to cause flooding around the I-90 westbound rest area. Water may approach the picnic and parking areas.
  8. 11.00 ftThe lowest areas along the river begin to flood.
  9. 10.00 ftWater reaches the lower deck of the railroad bridge.

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

100 crests on NOAA’s list since 1915.

#DateStage
1May 15, 192018.00 ft
2March 5, 198216.25 ft
3June 13, 191514.50 ft
4May 16, 201514.03 ft
5March 18, 201913.97 ft
6May 6, 193213.28 ft
7May 27, 199612.85 ft
8May 12, 194212.80 ft
9May 25, 196512.78 ft
10August 2, 201912.76 ft
11June 17, 196212.61 ft
12June 1, 193512.60 ft
13May 25, 195712.42 ft
14July 2, 198212.35 ft
15June 22, 194712.25 ft
16June 16, 196712.20 ft
17May 22, 197812.12 ft
18May 15, 196511.98 ft
19May 28, 199111.89 ft
20June 18, 196411.65 ft
21December 24, 195511.55 ft
22September 20, 195511.45 ft
23June 10, 198610.92 ft
24May 2, 194610.71 ft
25April 22, 200010.65 ft

Most recent crests

  • October 13, 2023: 8.20 ft
  • May 13, 2023: 7.01 ft
  • October 13, 2021: 7.60 ft
  • May 24, 2021: 4.87 ft
  • March 1, 2020: 3.31 ft
  • August 2, 2019: 12.76 ft
  • March 18, 2019: 13.97 ft
  • May 28, 2018: 7.21 ft
  • April 10, 2017: 5.03 ft
  • July 2, 2016: 7.12 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 and future precipitation. The stages/flows that will occur may be different if future rainfall is different than forecast. 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.