West Fork North Branch Chicago River at Deerfield

Highest listed crest 16.84 ftFlood stage 13.0 ft7 crests since 1967

The West Fork North Branch Chicago River at Deerfield crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 7 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1967 to 2020. The highest, 16.84 ft on June 10, 1967, was major flooding, 3.84 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the West Fork North Branch Chicago River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 16.84 ft; June 10, 1967; 571 cubic feet per second
Flood stage: 13.0 ft; Major flooding from 16.0 ft
Crests at major: 1; 101st of 177 gauges in Illinois
Most recent flood crest: May 23, 2020; 13.88 ft, minor flooding
Location: Lake County; Near Deerfield (0.2 mi), Highland Park (2.6 mi), Northbrook (2.9 mi)
Identifiers: NWS DRWI2; USGS 05535400

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, West Fork North Branch Chicago River at Deerfield

Action stage	11.0	0	—	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	13.0	1	May 23, 2020	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage	14.0	5	May 17, 2020	Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage	16.0	1	Jun 10, 1967	Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

7 crests from 1967 to 2020. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

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.
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

Highest listed crests, West Fork North Branch Chicago River at Deerfield

1	Jun 10, 1967	16.84	+3.84	Major	571
2	Jul 21, 2019	14.90	+1.90	Moderate	—
3	Sep 3, 2018	14.81	+1.81	Moderate	—
4	Sep 13, 2019	14.44	+1.44	Moderate	—
5	Oct 14, 2017	14.06	+1.06	Moderate	—
6	May 17, 2020	14.02	+1.02	Moderate	—
7	May 23, 2020	13.88	+0.88	Minor	—

The worst floods along the West Fork North Branch Chicago River

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the West Fork North Branch Chicago River that crested above flood stage within a week.

June 10, 1967: 16.84 ft here, major flooding

NorthbrookIL · Jun 10, 1967 · 8.86 ft · Major

July 21, 2019: 14.90 ft here, moderate flooding

NorthbrookIL · Jul 21, 2019 · 7.72 ft · Minor

September 3, 2018: 14.81 ft here, moderate flooding

NorthbrookIL · Sep 3, 2018 · 7.11 ft · Minor

Gauges on the West Fork North Branch Chicago River

In USGS station-number order, which runs downstream within a river basin.

Flood gauges on the West Fork North Branch Chicago River

Deerfield this gauge	IL	13.0	16.84 ft, Jun 10, 1967	1
Northbrook	IL	7.0	10.10 ft, Aug 14, 1987	7

Other gauges in Lake County

Flood gauges in Lake County

Lincolnshire	12.5	16.55 ft, Jul 13, 2017	4
Gurnee	7.0	12.09 ft, Jul 16, 2017	4
Russell	7.0	12.11 ft, Jul 14, 2017	8
Fox Lake	6.0	8.12 ft, Apr 5, 1960	6
Lake Villa	6.0	8.90 ft, Jul 4, 1938	7
Antioch	6.0	8.34 ft, Apr 5, 1960	6
Old Mill Creek	11.0	13.21 ft, Jul 12, 2017	0
Deerfield	9.5	12.75 ft, Jul 13, 2017	0
Highland Park	9.0	10.44 ft, Jul 13, 2017	0
Lake Forest	6.0	9.09 ft, Jul 12, 2017	0

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge DRWI2, 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.