Search
Menu

Explore

Hazards

Analysis

Rankings

Reference

Deer Creek near Chicago Heights

Highest listed crest 12.87 ftFlood stage 10.0 ft59 crests since 1954

The Deer Creek near Chicago Heights crested above flood stage 59 times among the 59 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1954 to 2021. The highest, 12.87 ft on September 15, 2008, was moderate flooding, 2.87 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
12.87 ft
September 15, 2008; 1,320 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
10.0 ft
Major flooding from 13.5 ft
Crests at major
0
59 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
May 9, 2021
10.23 ft, minor flooding
Location
Cook County
Near Chicago Heights (2.4 mi), Lansing (3.8 mi), Dyer (4.5 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Deer Creek near Chicago Heights
Action stage9.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)10.047May 9, 2021Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage11.512Sep 28, 2019Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage13.50—Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

59 crests from 1954 to 2021. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Deer Creek near Chicago Heights, 1954 to 2021 1011121314ft Flood stage 10.0 ftMajor 13.5 ft Oct 11, 1954: 11.19 ft, minor flooding; 637 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 1957: 11.75 ft, moderate flooding; 1,380 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 1979: 11.58 ft, moderate floodingJun 1, 1980: 10.98 ft, minor floodingApr 14, 1981: 11.20 ft, minor floodingJun 13, 1981: 11.49 ft, minor floodingMar 13, 1982: 11.14 ft, minor floodingApr 2, 1983: 10.05 ft, minor floodingApr 14, 1983: 10.20 ft, minor floodingMay 2, 1983: 10.68 ft, minor floodingJul 2, 1983: 10.94 ft, minor floodingDec 3, 1983: 11.49 ft, minor floodingFeb 13, 1984: 10.03 ft, minor floodingMar 16, 1984: 10.92 ft, minor floodingMay 22, 1984: 10.27 ft, minor floodingJan 1, 1985: 10.46 ft, minor floodingFeb 23, 1985: 11.20 ft, minor floodingMar 4, 1985: 10.39 ft, minor floodingOct 3, 1986: 10.14 ft, minor floodingNov 16, 1986: 10.94 ft, minor floodingNov 26, 1987: 10.05 ft, minor floodingApr 6, 1988: 10.23 ft, minor floodingJun 1, 1989: 11.36 ft, minor floodingNov 28, 1990: 11.79 ft, moderate flooding; 809 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 1993: 11.29 ft, minor flooding; 830 cubic feet per secondOct 17, 1993: 11.35 ft, minor flooding; 707 cubic feet per secondJul 18, 1996: 11.41 ft, minor flooding; 824 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 1997: 11.36 ft, minor flooding; 803 cubic feet per secondAug 5, 1998: 11.25 ft, minor flooding; 632 cubic feet per secondJan 23, 1999: 11.15 ft, minor flooding; 587 cubic feet per secondJun 25, 2000: 11.35 ft, minor flooding; 678 cubic feet per secondFeb 9, 2001: 11.28 ft, minor flooding; 645 cubic feet per secondMay 12, 2002: 11.49 ft, minor flooding; 660 cubic feet per secondJul 21, 2003: 11.33 ft, minor flooding; 597 cubic feet per secondNov 18, 2003: 10.66 ft, minor flooding; 413 cubic feet per secondJan 13, 2005: 11.55 ft, moderate flooding; 674 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 2006: 12.16 ft, moderate flooding; 873 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 2007: 12.37 ft, moderate flooding; 1,320 cubic feet per secondJan 8, 2008: 11.43 ft, minor flooding; 800 cubic feet per secondSep 15, 2008: 12.87 ft, moderate flooding; 1,320 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 2009: 10.97 ft, minor flooding; 509 cubic feet per secondAug 3, 2010: 11.02 ft, minor flooding; 684 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 2011: 11.83 ft, moderate flooding; 892 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 2012: 10.17 ft, minor flooding; 430 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 2013: 11.46 ft, minor flooding; 865 cubic feet per secondJul 1, 2014: 10.52 ft, minor flooding; 516 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 2015: 10.60 ft, minor flooding; 568 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 2017: 11.02 ft, minor flooding; 635 cubic feet per secondJul 22, 2017: 10.23 ft, minor flooding; 485 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 2018: 11.98 ft, moderate flooding; 949 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2019: 11.58 ft, moderate flooding; 805 cubic feet per secondMay 29, 2019: 11.37 ft, minor flooding; 737 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 2019: 11.98 ft, moderate flooding; 949 cubic feet per secondSep 28, 2019: 11.57 ft, moderate flooding; 803 cubic feet per secondOct 27, 2019: 10.76 ft, minor flooding; 591 cubic feet per secondJan 11, 2020: 11.11 ft, minor flooding; 658 cubic feet per secondApr 30, 2020: 10.85 ft, minor flooding; 605 cubic feet per secondMay 18, 2020: 11.10 ft, minor flooding; 657 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 2021: 10.23 ft, minor flooding; 517 cubic feet per second Highest, 12.87 ft, Sep 15, 2008 1960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Deer Creek near Chicago Heights 1950s: 2 1960s: 0 1970s: 1 1980s: 20 20 1990s: 7 2000s: 11 2010s: 14 2020s: 4 1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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 59 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Deer Creek near Chicago Heights
1Sep 15, 200812.87+2.87Moderate1,320
2Aug 24, 200712.37+2.37Moderate1,320
3Apr 17, 200612.16+2.16Moderate873
4Feb 21, 201811.98+1.98Moderate949
5Jun 27, 201911.98+1.98Moderate949
6Jun 10, 201111.83+1.83Moderate892
7Nov 28, 199011.79+1.79Moderate809
8Jul 13, 195711.75+1.75Moderate1,380
9Mar 4, 197911.58+1.58Moderate—
10May 1, 201911.58+1.58Moderate805
11Sep 28, 201911.57+1.57Moderate803
12Jan 13, 200511.55+1.55Moderate674
13Jun 13, 198111.49+1.49Minor—
14Dec 3, 198311.49+1.49Minor—
15May 12, 200211.49+1.49Minor660
16Apr 19, 201311.46+1.46Minor865
17Jan 8, 200811.43+1.43Minor800
18Jul 18, 199611.41+1.41Minor824
19May 29, 201911.37+1.37Minor737
20Jun 1, 198911.36+1.36Minor—
21Feb 21, 199711.36+1.36Minor803
22Oct 17, 199311.35+1.35Minor707
23Jun 25, 200011.35+1.35Minor678
24Jul 21, 200311.33+1.33Minor597
25Jun 8, 199311.29+1.29Minor830
26Feb 9, 200111.28+1.28Minor645
27Aug 5, 199811.25+1.25Minor632
28Apr 14, 198111.20+1.20Minor—
29Feb 23, 198511.20+1.20Minor—
30Oct 11, 195411.19+1.19Minor637
31Jan 23, 199911.15+1.15Minor587
32Mar 13, 198211.14+1.14Minor—
33Jan 11, 202011.11+1.11Minor658
34May 18, 202011.10+1.10Minor657
35Aug 3, 201011.02+1.02Minor684
36Mar 31, 201711.02+1.02Minor635
37Jun 1, 198010.98+0.98Minor—
38Mar 9, 200910.97+0.97Minor509
39Jul 2, 198310.94+0.94Minor—
40Nov 16, 198610.94+0.94Minor—
41Mar 16, 198410.92+0.92Minor—
42Apr 30, 202010.85+0.85Minor605
43Oct 27, 201910.76+0.76Minor591
44May 2, 198310.68+0.68Minor—
45Nov 18, 200310.66+0.66Minor413
46Jun 16, 201510.60+0.60Minor568
47Jul 1, 201410.52+0.52Minor516
48Jan 1, 198510.46+0.46Minor—
49Mar 4, 198510.39+0.39Minor—
50May 22, 198410.27+0.27Minor—

Other gauges in Cook County

Flood gauges in Cook County
Bellwood9.013.57 ft, Jul 24, 20104
Wheeling5.08.46 ft, Jun 26, 20136
Flossmoor9.013.08 ft, Apr 17, 20060
Markham10.012.00 ft, Oct 11, 19542
Chicago (Columbus Dr)3.05.50 ft, Oct 10, 19542
Chicago (Western Ave)4.05.26 ft, May 17, 20200
Des Plaines (Algonquin Road)13.021.00 ft, Sep 14, 20082
Lyons18.022.87 ft, Apr 18, 20132
River Forest16.018.98 ft, Apr 19, 20131
Riverside7.511.28 ft, Apr 18, 20137
Des Plaines15.020.92 ft, Apr 19, 20135
Lemont10.013.24 ft, May 18, 20200
Willow Springs10.010.57 ft, Apr 18, 20130
Lake Michigan at Calumet Harbor5.06.07 ft, Aug 11, 20200
Lake Michigan at Chicago (Chicago Lock)4.05.98 ft, Apr 29, 20200
Lansing7.010.18 ft, Oct 11, 19540
South Holland16.020.50 ft, Nov 28, 19905
Lemont6.011.10 ft, Jul 18, 19961
Mount Prospect5.08.08 ft, Aug 14, 19872
Oak Forest6.09.50 ft, Apr 5, 19472
Midlothian8.59.98 ft, Feb 2, 20160
Chicago (Grand Ave)3.05.70 ft, Oct 10, 19543
Chicago (Pulaski Rd)18.022.50 ft, Aug 14, 19871
Niles10.012.13 ft, Sep 14, 20082
Elgin5.57.69 ft, Sep 13, 20080
Elk Grove Village17.020.80 ft, May 18, 20200
Rolling Meadows8.514.03 ft, Aug 14, 19870
Western Springs7.510.65 ft, Apr 18, 20130
Worth31.036.50 ft, Oct 11, 19542
Glenwood8.511.14 ft, Jul 13, 19570
Thornton9.017.06 ft, Jun 14, 19816
Palos Park9.010.30 ft, Oct 10, 19540
Des Plaines9.015.09 ft, Jun 10, 19677
Northbrook7.010.10 ft, Aug 14, 19877

Cook County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Illinois

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CDCI2, 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.