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North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson

Highest listed crest 43.46 ftFlood stage 29.0 ft54 crests since 1939

The North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson crested at major flood stage 6 times among the 54 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1939 to 2025. The highest, 43.46 ft on July 29, 2022, was major flooding, 14.46 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the North Fork Kentucky River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 1 at its own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
43.46 ft
July 29, 2022; 54,400 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
29.0 ft
Major flooding from 40.0 ft
Crests at major
6
18th of 72 gauges in Kentucky
Most recent flood crest
February 17, 2025
37.69 ft, moderate flooding
Location
Breathitt County
Kentucky

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson
Action stage23.04Mar 27, 1965The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)29.011Feb 12, 2018Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage31.033Feb 17, 2025Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage40.06Jul 29, 2022Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

54 crests from 1939 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson, 1939 to 2025 2530354045ft Flood stage 29.0 ftMajor 40.0 ft Feb 4, 1939: 43.10 ft, major flooding; 46,800 cubic feet per secondJul 9, 1942: 32.33 ft, moderate flooding; 27,300 cubic feet per secondDec 31, 1942: 30.60 ft, minor flooding; 25,700 cubic feet per secondMar 20, 1943: 31.81 ft, moderate flooding; 26,500 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 1943: 28.20 ft, action stage; 22,300 cubic feet per secondMar 1, 1944: 28.10 ft, action stage; 21,500 cubic feet per secondMar 6, 1945: 30.60 ft, minor flooding; 24,900 cubic feet per secondJan 8, 1946: 38.80 ft, moderate flooding; 41,800 cubic feet per secondAug 6, 1947: 28.00 ft, action stage; 22,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 14, 1948: 40.55 ft, major flooding; 44,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 3, 1950: 36.50 ft, moderate flooding; 35,800 cubic feet per secondFeb 2, 1951: 41.28 ft, major flooding; 45,400 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 1952: 34.82 ft, moderate flooding; 32,600 cubic feet per secondFeb 28, 1955: 37.34 ft, moderate flooding; 37,500 cubic feet per secondMar 7, 1955: 31.03 ft, moderate flooding; 26,300 cubic feet per secondMar 17, 1955: 29.34 ft, minor flooding; 23,900 cubic feet per secondMar 22, 1955: 29.48 ft, minor flooding; 24,100 cubic feet per secondFeb 19, 1956: 36.04 ft, moderate flooding; 34,900 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 1956: 34.07 ft, moderate flooding; 31,200 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1956: 34.50 ft, moderate flooding; 32,000 cubic feet per secondJan 30, 1957: 40.41 ft, major flooding; 53,500 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1958: 31.22 ft, moderate flooding; 32,200 cubic feet per secondFeb 28, 1962: 37.99 ft, moderate flooding; 45,400 cubic feet per secondMar 13, 1963: 37.17 ft, moderate flooding; 43,400 cubic feet per secondMar 27, 1965: 28.90 ft, action stage; 26,800 cubic feet per secondMar 8, 1967: 34.50 ft, moderate flooding; 36,900 cubic feet per secondDec 31, 1969: 29.50 ft, minor flooding; 27,500 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 1970: 30.00 ft, minor flooding; 28,300 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1971: 31.43 ft, moderate flooding; 30,800 cubic feet per secondFeb 26, 1972: 31.56 ft, moderate flooding; 31,000 cubic feet per secondApr 15, 1972: 29.00 ft, minor flooding; 26,700 cubic feet per secondMar 18, 1973: 29.21 ft, minor flooding; 27,000 cubic feet per secondNov 28, 1973: 34.31 ft, moderate flooding; 36,500 cubic feet per secondJan 11, 1974: 36.50 ft, moderate flooding; 40,900 cubic feet per secondJun 23, 1974: 34.00 ft, moderate flooding; 35,900 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 1975: 36.64 ft, moderate flooding; 41,200 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1977: 35.87 ft, moderate flooding; 39,600 cubic feet per secondDec 9, 1978: 35.03 ft, moderate flooding; 37,900 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1981: 32.41 ft, moderate flooding; 36,100 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1984: 41.97 ft, major flooding; 53,500 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 1989: 32.77 ft, moderate flooding; 30,100 cubic feet per secondOct 18, 1989: 34.16 ft, moderate flooding; 31,800 cubic feet per secondDec 3, 1991: 36.18 ft, moderate flooding; 34,400 cubic feet per secondMar 28, 1994: 31.88 ft, moderate flooding; 29,000 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 1998: 33.30 ft, moderate floodingFeb 17, 2003: 37.29 ft, moderate flooding; 35,900 cubic feet per secondFeb 7, 2004: 29.26 ft, minor flooding; 25,444 cubic feet per secondMay 31, 2004: 32.17 ft, moderate flooding; 29,333 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 2009: 34.34 ft, moderate flooding; 33,200 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 2015: 29.69 ft, minor flooding; 25,354 cubic feet per secondFeb 12, 2018: 29.09 ft, minor flooding; 24,611 cubic feet per secondMar 2, 2021: 39.04 ft, moderate flooding; 41,100 cubic feet per secondJul 29, 2022: 43.46 ft, major flooding; 54,400 cubic feet per secondFeb 17, 2025: 37.69 ft, moderate flooding; 39,305 cubic feet per second Highest, 43.46 ft, Jul 29, 2022 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson 1930s: 1 1940s: 6 1950s: 12 12 1960s: 4 1970s: 11 1980s: 4 1990s: 3 2000s: 4 2010s: 2 2020s: 3 1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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. 11 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 40.00 ft on Mar 1, 1913; 31.50 ft on Jan 4, 1917; 40.00 ft on Jan 28, 1918; 31.00 ft on Jan 20, 1919; 33.00 ft on Jan 23, 1920; 42.90 ft on May 30, 1927; and more.

Highest crests

The 50 highest of 54 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson
1Jul 29, 202243.46+14.46Major54,400
2Feb 4, 193943.10+14.10Major46,800
3May 8, 198441.97+12.97Major53,500
4Feb 2, 195141.28+12.28Major45,400
5Feb 14, 194840.55+11.55Major44,000
6Jan 30, 195740.41+11.41Major53,500
7Mar 2, 202139.04+10.04Moderate41,100
8Jan 8, 194638.80+9.80Moderate41,800
9Feb 28, 196237.99+8.99Moderate45,400
10Feb 17, 202537.69+8.69Moderate39,305
11Feb 28, 195537.34+8.34Moderate37,500
12Feb 17, 200337.29+8.29Moderate35,900
13Mar 13, 196337.17+8.17Moderate43,400
14Mar 14, 197536.64+7.64Moderate41,200
15Feb 3, 195036.50+7.50Moderate35,800
16Jan 11, 197436.50+7.50Moderate40,900
17Dec 3, 199136.18+7.18Moderate34,400
18Feb 19, 195636.04+7.04Moderate34,900
19Apr 6, 197735.87+6.87Moderate39,600
20Dec 9, 197835.03+6.03Moderate37,900
21Mar 23, 195234.82+5.82Moderate32,600
22Apr 16, 195634.50+5.50Moderate32,000
23Mar 8, 196734.50+5.50Moderate36,900
24May 10, 200934.34+5.34Moderate33,200
25Nov 28, 197334.31+5.31Moderate36,500
26Oct 18, 198934.16+5.16Moderate31,800
27Mar 15, 195634.07+5.07Moderate31,200
28Jun 23, 197434.00+5.00Moderate35,900
29Apr 20, 199833.30+4.30Moderate—
30Jun 16, 198932.77+3.77Moderate30,100
31Jun 7, 198132.41+3.41Moderate36,100
32Jul 9, 194232.33+3.33Moderate27,300
33May 31, 200432.17+3.17Moderate29,333
34Mar 28, 199431.88+2.88Moderate29,000
35Mar 20, 194331.81+2.81Moderate26,500
36Feb 26, 197231.56+2.56Moderate31,000
37May 8, 197131.43+2.43Moderate30,800
38May 8, 195831.22+2.22Moderate32,200
39Mar 7, 195531.03+2.03Moderate26,300
40Dec 31, 194230.60+1.60Minor25,700
41Mar 6, 194530.60+1.60Minor24,900
42Apr 29, 197030.00+1.00Minor28,300
43Mar 5, 201529.69+0.69Minor25,354
44Dec 31, 196929.50+0.50Minor27,500
45Mar 22, 195529.48+0.48Minor24,100
46Mar 17, 195529.34+0.34Minor23,900
47Feb 7, 200429.26+0.26Minor25,444
48Mar 18, 197329.21+0.21Minor27,000
49Feb 12, 201829.09+0.09Minor24,611
50Apr 15, 197229.000.00Minor26,700

The worst floods along the North Fork Kentucky River

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

July 29, 2022: 43.46 ft here, major flooding

  • WhitesburgKY · Jul 28, 2022 · 22.03 ft · Major · its highest

February 4, 1939: 43.10 ft here, major flooding

  • HazardKY · Feb 3, 1939 · 29.95 ft · Moderate

May 8, 1984: 41.97 ft here, major flooding

  • HazardKY · May 7, 1984 · 32.12 ft · Moderate

Gauges on the North Fork Kentucky River

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

Flood gauges on the North Fork Kentucky River
WhitesburgKY10.022.03 ft, Jul 28, 20221
HazardKY20.037.54 ft, Jan 29, 19574
Jackson this gaugeKY29.043.46 ft, Jul 29, 20226

Breathitt County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Kentucky

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge JKNK2, 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.