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Floyd River at Merrill

Highest listed crest 20.19 ftFlood stage 12.0 ft51 crests since 1901

The Floyd River at Merrill crested at major flood stage 13 times among the 51 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1901 to 2025. The highest, 20.19 ft on June 23, 2024, was major flooding, 8.19 feet above flood stage. 5 other gauges on the Floyd River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 4 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
20.19 ft
June 23, 2024
Flood stage
12.0 ft
Major flooding from 16.0 ft
Crests at major
13
17th of 203 gauges in Iowa
Most recent flood crest
June 23, 2024
20.19 ft, major flooding
Location
Plymouth County
Near Le Mars (5.4 mi)
Identifiers
NWS MRLI4
No USGS station

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Floyd River at Merrill
Action stage10.02Apr 14, 2001The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)12.013Jul 31, 2010Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage14.014Jun 21, 1996Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage16.013Jun 23, 2024Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

51 crests from 1901 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Floyd River at Merrill, 1901 to 2025 0510152025ft Flood stage 12.0 ftMajor 16.0 ft Jan 1, 1901: 16.80 ft, major floodingMay 17, 1908: 13.20 ft, minor floodingJul 11, 1909: 14.00 ft, moderate floodingMar 5, 1910: 12.70 ft, minor floodingMar 28, 1912: 14.80 ft, moderate floodingFeb 20, 1915: 12.80 ft, minor floodingMar 22, 1917: 14.50 ft, moderate floodingSep 18, 1926: 20.00 ft, major floodingMar 13, 1929: 12.20 ft, minor floodingJun 9, 1932: 15.00 ft, moderate floodingJun 7, 1934: 18.40 ft, major floodingMar 10, 1936: 14.50 ft, moderate floodingMar 5, 1937: 15.60 ft, moderate floodingJun 4, 1942: 15.25 ft, moderate floodingMay 13, 1944: 14.20 ft, moderate floodingMar 1, 1945: 13.50 ft, minor floodingJun 24, 1947: 13.00 ft, minor floodingMar 5, 1949: 12.80 ft, minor floodingJun 18, 1950: 14.50 ft, moderate floodingJul 4, 1951: 14.30 ft, moderate floodingMar 30, 1952: 14.80 ft, moderate floodingJun 8, 1953: 18.00 ft, major floodingJun 21, 1954: 14.00 ft, moderate floodingMar 29, 1960: 16.00 ft, major floodingMar 29, 1962: 16.03 ft, major floodingApr 1, 1965: 12.90 ft, minor floodingApr 4, 1966: 16.50 ft, major floodingApr 5, 1969: 16.60 ft, major floodingFeb 19, 1971: 15.98 ft, moderate floodingMar 24, 1979: 17.00 ft, major floodingJun 16, 1983: 17.00 ft, major floodingJun 21, 1984: 12.00 ft, minor floodingApr 23, 1985: 13.65 ft, minor floodingMar 18, 1986: 12.80 ft, minor floodingMar 24, 1987: 6.17 ft, below flood stageAug 22, 1988: 7.45 ft, below flood stageMar 10, 1989: 5.30 ft, below flood stageJun 17, 1990: 9.55 ft, below flood stageJun 1, 1991: 10.80 ft, action stageJul 13, 1992: 5.62 ft, below flood stageMar 29, 1993: 13.10 ft, minor floodingJun 21, 1996: 15.90 ft, moderate floodingMar 12, 1997: 8.70 ft, below flood stageApr 14, 2001: 10.00 ft, action stageJul 31, 2010: 12.20 ft, minor floodingSep 21, 2018: 17.00 ft, major floodingMar 15, 2019: 17.60 ft, major floodingJun 24, 2020: 2.19 ft, below flood stageAug 7, 2023: 3.75 ft, below flood stageJun 23, 2024: 20.19 ft, major floodingJul 31, 2025: 8.44 ft, below flood stage Highest, 20.19 ft, Jun 23, 2024 192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Floyd River at Merrill 1900s: 3 1910s: 4 1920s: 2 1930s: 4 1940s: 5 5 1950s: 5 1960s: 5 1970s: 2 1980s: 4 1990s: 2 2000s: 0 2010s: 3 2020s: 1 1900s1910s1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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 51 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Floyd River at Merrill
1Jun 23, 202420.19+8.19Major—
2Sep 18, 192620.00+8.00Major—
3Jun 7, 193418.40+6.40Major—
4Jun 8, 195318.00+6.00Major—
5Mar 15, 201917.60+5.60Major—
6Mar 24, 197917.00+5.00Major—
7Jun 16, 198317.00+5.00Major—
8Sep 21, 201817.00+5.00Major—
9Jan 1, 190116.80+4.80Major—
10Apr 5, 196916.60+4.60Major—
11Apr 4, 196616.50+4.50Major—
12Mar 29, 196216.03+4.03Major—
13Mar 29, 196016.00+4.00Major—
14Feb 19, 197115.98+3.98Moderate—
15Jun 21, 199615.90+3.90Moderate—
16Mar 5, 193715.60+3.60Moderate—
17Jun 4, 194215.25+3.25Moderate—
18Jun 9, 193215.00+3.00Moderate—
19Mar 28, 191214.80+2.80Moderate—
20Mar 30, 195214.80+2.80Moderate—
21Mar 22, 191714.50+2.50Moderate—
22Mar 10, 193614.50+2.50Moderate—
23Jun 18, 195014.50+2.50Moderate—
24Jul 4, 195114.30+2.30Moderate—
25May 13, 194414.20+2.20Moderate—
26Jul 11, 190914.00+2.00Moderate—
27Jun 21, 195414.00+2.00Moderate—
28Apr 23, 198513.65+1.65Minor—
29Mar 1, 194513.50+1.50Minor—
30May 17, 190813.20+1.20Minor—
31Mar 29, 199313.10+1.10Minor—
32Jun 24, 194713.00+1.00Minor—
33Apr 1, 196512.90+0.90Minor—
34Feb 20, 191512.80+0.80Minor—
35Mar 5, 194912.80+0.80Minor—
36Mar 18, 198612.80+0.80Minor—
37Mar 5, 191012.70+0.70Minor—
38Mar 13, 192912.20+0.20Minor—
39Jul 31, 201012.20+0.20Minor—
40Jun 21, 198412.000.00Minor—
41Jun 1, 199110.80−1.20Action—
42Apr 14, 200110.00−2.00Action—
43Jun 17, 19909.55−2.45Below flood stage—
44Mar 12, 19978.70−3.30Below flood stage—
45Jul 31, 20258.44−3.56Below flood stage—
46Aug 22, 19887.45−4.55Below flood stage—
47Mar 24, 19876.17−5.83Below flood stage—
48Jul 13, 19925.62−6.38Below flood stage—
49Mar 10, 19895.30−6.70Below flood stage—
50Aug 7, 20233.75−8.25Below flood stage—

The worst floods along the Floyd River

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

June 23, 2024: 20.19 ft here, major flooding

  • Le MarsIA · Jun 23, 2024 · 27.97 ft · Major · its highest
  • AltonIA · Jun 22, 2024 · 26.81 ft · Major · its highest
  • StrubleIA · Jun 22, 2024 · 18.47 ft · Major · its highest
  • JamesIA · Jun 23, 2024 · 32.39 ft · Moderate · its highest
  • SheldonIA · Jun 22, 2024 · 17.62 ft · Moderate

June 8, 1953: 18.00 ft here, major flooding

  • Le MarsIA · Jun 8, 1953 · 26.40 ft · Major
  • SheldonIA · Jun 7, 1953 · 19.96 ft · Major · its highest

March 15, 2019: 17.60 ft here, major flooding

  • JamesIA · Mar 15, 2019 · 31.48 ft · Moderate
  • Le MarsIA · Mar 14, 2019 · 25.84 ft · Moderate
  • AltonIA · Mar 14, 2019 · 20.87 ft · Moderate
  • StrubleIA · Mar 14, 2019 · 16.41 ft · Moderate
  • SheldonIA · Mar 14, 2019 · 13.70 ft · Minor

Gauges on the Floyd River

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

Flood gauges on the Floyd River
AltonIA12.026.81 ft, Jun 22, 20241
JamesIA26.032.39 ft, Jun 23, 20240
Le MarsIA20.027.97 ft, Jun 23, 20243
Merrill this gaugeIA12.020.19 ft, Jun 23, 202413
SheldonIA12.019.96 ft, Jun 7, 19531
StrubleIA14.018.47 ft, Jun 22, 20241

Other gauges in Plymouth County

Flood gauges in Plymouth County
Akron16.027.35 ft, Jun 22, 202424
Jefferson31.044.50 ft, Jun 24, 20242
Richland1,117.01,128.70 ft, Jun 23, 20245
James26.032.39 ft, Jun 23, 20240
Le Mars20.027.97 ft, Jun 23, 20243
Hinton28.032.68 ft, Jun 17, 20141
Millnerville8.014.54 ft, Jun 17, 20143
Oyens1,266.01,266.94 ft, Jun 22, 20240

Plymouth County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Iowa

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge MRLI4, 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.