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Arkansas River at Hutchinson

Highest listed crest 13.85 ftFlood stage 8.0 ft41 crests since 1927

The Arkansas River at Hutchinson crested above flood stage 31 times among the 41 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1927 to 2019. The highest, 13.85 ft on April 2, 1973, was moderate flooding, 5.85 feet above flood stage. 5 other gauges on the Arkansas River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
13.85 ft
April 2, 1973
Flood stage
8.0 ft
Major flooding from 19.0 ft
Crests at major
0
31 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
June 24, 2019
9.00 ft, minor flooding
Location
Reno County
Near Hutchinson (2.3 mi)
Identifiers
NWS HCHK1
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, Arkansas River at Hutchinson
Action stage6.010Apr 29, 2009The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)8.029Jun 24, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage13.02Sep 27, 1973Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage19.00—Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

41 crests from 1927 to 2019. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Arkansas River at Hutchinson, 1927 to 2019 5101520ft Flood stage 8.0 ftMajor 19.0 ft Aug 17, 1927: 8.40 ft, minor flooding; 13,500 cubic feet per secondAug 17, 1929: 8.40 ft, minor floodingMay 30, 1935: 7.90 ft, action stageMay 3, 1942: 8.70 ft, minor flooding; 14,000 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 1944: 7.60 ft, action stageJun 7, 1947: 6.30 ft, action stage; 8,800 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 1948: 8.70 ft, minor floodingJul 22, 1948: 8.20 ft, minor flooding; 13,000 cubic feet per secondJun 15, 1949: 8.20 ft, minor flooding; 13,000 cubic feet per secondAug 2, 1950: 8.98 ft, minor flooding; 17,000 cubic feet per secondAug 8, 1950: 9.00 ft, minor floodingAug 17, 1950: 8.10 ft, minor floodingMay 27, 1951: 9.20 ft, minor floodingJun 29, 1951: 8.65 ft, minor floodingJul 5, 1951: 8.60 ft, minor floodingJul 16, 1951: 10.10 ft, minor flooding; 18,000 cubic feet per secondAug 6, 1953: 6.80 ft, action stage; 9,900 cubic feet per secondJun 30, 1957: 9.15 ft, minor floodingAug 2, 1958: 9.00 ft, minor floodingJun 15, 1965: 8.58 ft, minor floodingJun 27, 1965: 10.42 ft, minor floodingJul 3, 1967: 7.36 ft, action stageSep 4, 1969: 7.35 ft, action stageJun 19, 1970: 7.57 ft, action stageNov 21, 1971: 7.92 ft, action stageApr 2, 1973: 13.85 ft, moderate floodingSep 27, 1973: 13.10 ft, moderate floodingOct 30, 1979: 9.30 ft, minor floodingJun 19, 1981: 7.60 ft, action stageMar 27, 1987: 10.30 ft, minor floodingApr 19, 1987: 9.10 ft, minor floodingJul 23, 1993: 10.10 ft, minor floodingJun 4, 1996: 9.02 ft, minor flooding; 6,390 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 2007: 12.70 ft, minor flooding; 34,787 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 2007: 10.82 ft, minor flooding; 23,882 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 2009: 6.15 ft, action stageAug 7, 2013: 8.12 ft, minor floodingOct 12, 2018: 10.88 ft, minor flooding; 16,394 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 2019: 10.86 ft, minor flooding; 16,423 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 2019: 10.30 ft, minor flooding; 14,988 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 2019: 9.00 ft, minor flooding; 11,972 cubic feet per second Highest, 13.85 ft, Apr 2, 1973 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Arkansas River at Hutchinson 1920s: 2 1930s: 0 1940s: 4 1950s: 9 9 1960s: 2 1970s: 3 1980s: 2 1990s: 2 2000s: 2 2010s: 5 1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s
  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.
  3. 1 crest measured on an earlier gauge datum is left out: 7.50 ft on Aug 28, 1923.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Arkansas River at Hutchinson
1Apr 2, 197313.85+5.85Moderate—
2Sep 27, 197313.10+5.10Moderate—
3May 8, 200712.70+4.70Minor34,787
4Oct 12, 201810.88+2.88Minor16,394
5May 10, 201910.86+2.86Minor16,423
6May 26, 200710.82+2.82Minor23,882
7Jun 27, 196510.42+2.42Minor—
8Mar 27, 198710.30+2.30Minor—
9May 22, 201910.30+2.30Minor14,988
10Jul 16, 195110.10+2.10Minor18,000
11Jul 23, 199310.10+2.10Minor—
12Oct 30, 19799.30+1.30Minor—
13May 27, 19519.20+1.20Minor—
14Jun 30, 19579.15+1.15Minor—
15Apr 19, 19879.10+1.10Minor—
16Jun 4, 19969.02+1.02Minor6,390
17Aug 8, 19509.00+1.00Minor—
18Aug 2, 19589.00+1.00Minor—
19Jun 24, 20199.00+1.00Minor11,972
20Aug 2, 19508.98+0.98Minor17,000
21May 3, 19428.70+0.70Minor14,000
22May 3, 19488.70+0.70Minor—
23Jun 29, 19518.65+0.65Minor—
24Jul 5, 19518.60+0.60Minor—
25Jun 15, 19658.58+0.58Minor—
26Aug 17, 19278.40+0.40Minor13,500
27Aug 17, 19298.40+0.40Minor—
28Jul 22, 19488.20+0.20Minor13,000
29Jun 15, 19498.20+0.20Minor13,000
30Aug 7, 20138.12+0.12Minor—
31Aug 17, 19508.10+0.10Minor—
32Nov 21, 19717.92−0.08Action—
33May 30, 19357.90−0.10Action—
34May 7, 19447.60−0.40Action—
35Jun 19, 19817.60−0.40Action—
36Jun 19, 19707.57−0.43Action—
37Jul 3, 19677.36−0.64Action—
38Sep 4, 19697.35−0.65Action—
39Aug 6, 19536.80−1.20Action9,900
40Jun 7, 19476.30−1.70Action8,800
41Apr 29, 20096.15−1.85Action—

The worst floods along the Arkansas River

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

April 2, 1973: 13.85 ft here, moderate flooding

  • HavenKS · Apr 2, 1973 · 12.02 ft · Major
  • DerbyKS · Mar 31, 1973 · 15.51 ft · Moderate
  • RalstonOK · Apr 3, 1973 · 16.92 ft · Minor
  • Great BendKS · Apr 3, 1973 · 14.62 ft · Minor
  • Kinsley 2EKS · Apr 1, 1973 · 13.66 ft · Minor

September 27, 1973: 13.10 ft here, moderate flooding

  • HavenKS · Sep 28, 1973 · 12.95 ft · Major
  • DerbyKS · Oct 1, 1973 · 15.51 ft · Moderate
  • Kinsley 2EKS · Sep 27, 1973 · 14.02 ft · Moderate
  • Great BendKS · Sep 29, 1973 · 13.94 ft · Minor

May 8, 2007: 12.70 ft here, minor flooding

  • HavenKS · May 8, 2007 · 13.08 ft · Major · its highest
  • MuskogeeOK · May 11, 2007 · 28.63 ft · Minor
  • Van BurenAR · May 12, 2007 · 22.21 ft · Minor
  • OxfordKS · May 8, 2007 · 19.55 ft · Minor
  • MulvaneKS · May 9, 2007 · 17.19 ft · Minor
  • DerbyKS · May 9, 2007 · 12.22 ft · Minor

Gauges on the Arkansas River

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

Flood gauges on the Arkansas River
Arkansas CityKS11.020.91 ft, May 9, 20190
DardanelleAR32.045.91 ft, May 30, 20195
DerbyKS12.016.60 ft, Nov 2, 19981
Great BendKS12.017.70 ft, Jun 15, 19810
Hutchinson this gaugeKS8.013.85 ft, Apr 2, 19730
Little RockAR23.034.60 ft, Jun 17, 183329
MorriltonAR30.043.03 ft, Jun 4, 201910
OxfordKS17.026.85 ft, Nov 2, 19982
Ozark L/D TailwaterAR357.0374.99 ft, May 30, 20197
PendletonAR31.037.63 ft, Jun 6, 20194
Pine BluffAR42.052.10 ft, May 28, 19436
RalstonOK16.023.00 ft, Jun 11, 192310
Toad Suck Lock and DamAR275.0285.40 ft, Jun 4, 20195
TulsaOK18.025.21 ft, Oct 5, 19864
Van BurenAR22.040.79 ft, Jun 1, 201918
HaskellOK19.026.02 ft, Jan 1, 19802
HavenKS10.013.08 ft, May 8, 20079
Kinsley 2EKS12.017.60 ft, Jun 21, 19651
MulvaneKS16.520.90 ft, Nov 2, 19980
MuskogeeOK28.048.20 ft, May 21, 194311
Ponca CityOK17.022.26 ft, May 24, 20191

Other gauges in Reno County

Flood gauges in Reno County
Haven10.013.08 ft, May 8, 20079
Hutchinson9.512.87 ft, Oct 11, 20182

Reno County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Kansas

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge HCHK1, 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.