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Tanana River at Fairbanks

Highest listed crest 27.80 ftFlood stage 24.5 ft58 crests since 1967

The Tanana River at Fairbanks crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 58 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1967 to 2025. The highest, 27.80 ft on August 16, 1967, was major flooding, 3.30 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Tanana River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 1 at its own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
27.80 ft
August 16, 1967; 125,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
24.5 ft
Major flooding from 27.0 ft
Crests at major
1
18th of 110 gauges in Alaska
Most recent flood crest
August 31, 2023
25.50 ft, minor flooding

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Tanana River at Fairbanks
Action stage23.522Aug 31, 2025The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)24.518Aug 31, 2023Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage26.05May 11, 2023Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage27.01Aug 16, 1967Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

58 crests from 1967 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Tanana River at Fairbanks, 1967 to 2025 2022242628ft Flood stage 24.5 ftMajor 27.0 ft Aug 16, 1967: 27.80 ft, major flooding; 125,000 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 1973: 23.48 ft, below flood stage; 62,800 cubic feet per secondAug 30, 1974: 23.07 ft, below flood stage; 59,400 cubic feet per secondJul 22, 1975: 24.05 ft, action stage; 68,300 cubic feet per secondAug 6, 1977: 23.50 ft, action stage; 62,900 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 1978: 23.17 ft, below flood stage; 60,200 cubic feet per secondAug 3, 1979: 24.71 ft, minor flooding; 75,100 cubic feet per secondJul 29, 1980: 23.21 ft, below flood stage; 60,500 cubic feet per secondJul 28, 1981: 23.83 ft, action stage; 66,100 cubic feet per secondJul 19, 1982: 24.26 ft, action stage; 70,400 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 1983: 24.52 ft, minor flooding; 73,100 cubic feet per secondJun 17, 1984: 25.76 ft, minor flooding; 87,700 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 1985: 23.88 ft, action stage; 78,000 cubic feet per secondJul 22, 1986: 25.67 ft, minor flooding; 96,400 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 1987: 24.39 ft, action stage; 87,000 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 1988: 24.58 ft, minor flooding; 79,500 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 1989: 25.17 ft, minor flooding; 88,300 cubic feet per secondAug 21, 1990: 23.93 ft, action stage; 63,900 cubic feet per secondJul 4, 1991: 24.10 ft, action stage; 70,200 cubic feet per secondMay 15, 1992: 25.19 ft, minor floodingJul 21, 1992: 24.54 ft, minor flooding; 77,500 cubic feet per secondApr 25, 1993: 24.38 ft, action stageJul 22, 1993: 23.68 ft, action stage; 64,300 cubic feet per secondAug 12, 1994: 24.59 ft, minor flooding; 75,100 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 1995: 24.47 ft, action stage; 70,600 cubic feet per secondAug 1, 1996: 22.94 ft, below flood stage; 50,200 cubic feet per secondAug 14, 1997: 26.25 ft, moderate flooding; 95,300 cubic feet per secondJul 18, 1998: 23.98 ft, action stage; 61,700 cubic feet per secondAug 14, 1999: 24.16 ft, action stage; 64,000 cubic feet per secondAug 16, 2000: 24.78 ft, minor flooding; 73,400 cubic feet per secondAug 2, 2001: 25.19 ft, minor flooding; 79,000 cubic feet per secondAug 19, 2002: 24.57 ft, minor flooding; 72,500 cubic feet per secondJul 18, 2003: 25.42 ft, minor flooding; 83,000 cubic feet per secondJul 1, 2004: 23.89 ft, action stage; 68,400 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 2005: 24.50 ft, minor flooding; 73,600 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 2006: 25.02 ft, minor flooding; 78,600 cubic feet per secondAug 8, 2007: 23.81 ft, action stage; 67,400 cubic feet per secondJul 30, 2008: 26.66 ft, moderate flooding; 111,000 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 2009: 26.40 ft, moderate floodingJul 16, 2009: 22.78 ft, below flood stage; 60,400 cubic feet per secondJul 24, 2010: 23.37 ft, below flood stage; 67,700 cubic feet per secondJul 6, 2011: 23.63 ft, action stage; 70,600 cubic feet per secondJul 4, 2012: 23.86 ft, action stage; 73,000 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 2013: 23.45 ft, below flood stage; 69,400 cubic feet per secondJul 3, 2014: 23.49 ft, below flood stage; 69,600 cubic feet per secondAug 29, 2015: 21.64 ft, below flood stage; 51,800 cubic feet per secondJul 23, 2016: 24.18 ft, action stage; 81,700 cubic feet per secondJul 14, 2017: 22.74 ft, below flood stage; 64,300 cubic feet per secondAug 8, 2018: 24.49 ft, action stage; 82,700 cubic feet per secondAug 18, 2019: 24.67 ft, minor flooding; 85,100 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 2020: 26.10 ft, moderate flooding; 102,000 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 2021: 23.59 ft, action stageJul 25, 2021: 23.04 ft, below flood stage; 58,600 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 2022: 24.78 ft, minor flooding; 81,500 cubic feet per secondMay 11, 2023: 26.11 ft, moderate floodingAug 31, 2023: 25.50 ft, minor flooding; 92,300 cubic feet per secondAug 11, 2024: 24.44 ft, action stage; 76,600 cubic feet per secondAug 31, 2025: 23.87 ft, action stage; 68,600 cubic feet per second Highest, 27.80 ft, Aug 16, 1967 197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Tanana River at Fairbanks 1960s: 1 1970s: 1 1980s: 5 1990s: 4 2000s: 8 8 2010s: 1 2020s: 4 1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  1. These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
  2. Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.

Highest crests

The 50 highest of 58 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Tanana River at Fairbanks
1Aug 16, 196727.80+3.30Major125,000
2Jul 30, 200826.66+2.16Moderate111,000
3May 3, 200926.40+1.90Moderate—
4Aug 14, 199726.25+1.75Moderate95,300
5May 11, 202326.11+1.61Moderate—
6Jun 24, 202026.10+1.60Moderate102,000
7Jun 17, 198425.76+1.26Minor87,700
8Jul 22, 198625.67+1.17Minor96,400
9Aug 31, 202325.50+1.00Minor92,300
10Jul 18, 200325.42+0.92Minor83,000
11May 15, 199225.19+0.69Minor—
12Aug 2, 200125.19+0.69Minor79,000
13Jun 27, 198925.17+0.67Minor88,300
14Jun 24, 200625.02+0.52Minor78,600
15Aug 16, 200024.78+0.28Minor73,400
16Jul 13, 202224.78+0.28Minor81,500
17Aug 3, 197924.71+0.21Minor75,100
18Aug 18, 201924.67+0.17Minor85,100
19Aug 12, 199424.59+0.09Minor75,100
20Jul 16, 198824.58+0.08Minor79,500
21Aug 19, 200224.57+0.07Minor72,500
22Jul 21, 199224.54+0.04Minor77,500
23Jul 13, 198324.52+0.02Minor73,100
24Jun 21, 200524.500.00Minor73,600
25Aug 8, 201824.49−0.01Action82,700
26Jun 28, 199524.47−0.03Action70,600
27Aug 11, 202424.44−0.06Action76,600
28Jul 16, 198724.39−0.11Action87,000
29Apr 25, 199324.38−0.12Action—
30Jul 19, 198224.26−0.24Action70,400
31Jul 23, 201624.18−0.32Action81,700
32Aug 14, 199924.16−0.34Action64,000
33Jul 4, 199124.10−0.40Action70,200
34Jul 22, 197524.05−0.45Action68,300
35Jul 18, 199823.98−0.52Action61,700
36Aug 21, 199023.93−0.57Action63,900
37Jul 1, 200423.89−0.61Action68,400
38Jun 28, 198523.88−0.62Action78,000
39Aug 31, 202523.87−0.63Action68,600
40Jul 4, 201223.86−0.64Action73,000
41Jul 28, 198123.83−0.67Action66,100
42Aug 8, 200723.81−0.69Action67,400
43Jul 22, 199323.68−0.82Action64,300
44Jul 6, 201123.63−0.87Action70,600
45May 3, 202123.59−0.91Action—
46Aug 6, 197723.50−1.00Action62,900
47Jul 3, 201423.49−1.01Below flood stage69,600
48Aug 24, 197323.48−1.02Below flood stage62,800
49Jun 7, 201323.45−1.05Below flood stage69,400
50Jul 24, 201023.37−1.13Below flood stage67,700

The worst floods along the Tanana River

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the Tanana River that crested above flood stage within a week.

August 16, 1967: 27.80 ft here, major flooding

  • NenanaAK · Aug 18, 1967 · 18.50 ft · Major · its highest

July 30, 2008: 26.66 ft here, moderate flooding

  • NenanaAK · Aug 2, 2008 · 14.66 ft · Moderate

August 14, 1997: 26.25 ft here, moderate flooding

  • Big DeltaAK · Aug 14, 1997 · 23.31 ft · Minor

Gauges on the Tanana River

Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.

Flood gauges on the Tanana River
Big DeltaAK23.023.57 ft, Jul 29, 19490
Fairbanks this gaugeAK24.527.80 ft, Aug 16, 19671
Manley Hot SpringsAK15.019.55 ft, May 8, 20220
NenanaAK12.518.50 ft, Aug 18, 19671

Other gauges in Fairbanks North Star Borough

Flood gauges in Fairbanks North Star Borough
Steese Hwy Bridge near Chatanika13.513.86 ft, Jul 28, 20030
Hunts Creek near Two Rivers17.220.17 ft, Apr 23, 20200
Moose Creek Dam near Fairbanks24.527.51 ft, Apr 24, 20200
Two Rivers20.023.65 ft, Jun 26, 19940
Fairbanks25.031.90 ft, Aug 13, 19670
Salchaket15.021.78 ft, Aug 14, 19670

Fairbanks North Star Borough: every hazard · River floods across the country · Alaska

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge TAFA2, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.