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Tug Fork River at Williamson

Highest listed crest 48.35 ftFlood stage 27.0 ft48 crests since 1956

The Tug Fork River at Williamson crested at major flood stage 4 times among the 48 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1956 to 2025. The highest, 48.35 ft on February 16, 2025, was major flooding, 21.35 feet above flood stage. 3 other gauges on the Tug Fork River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 2 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
48.35 ft
February 16, 2025; 75,181 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
27.0 ft
Major flooding from 42.7 ft
Crests at major
4
26th of 72 gauges in Kentucky
Most recent flood crest
February 16, 2025
48.35 ft, major flooding
Location
Pike County
Kentucky

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Tug Fork River at Williamson
Action stage25.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)27.021Feb 18, 2023Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage32.017Mar 2, 2021Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage42.74Feb 16, 2025Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

48 crests from 1956 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Tug Fork River at Williamson, 1956 to 2025 20304050ft Flood stage 27.0 ftMajor 42.7 ft Apr 16, 1956: 31.30 ft, minor floodingJan 30, 1957: 43.60 ft, major floodingMay 7, 1958: 36.30 ft, moderate floodingFeb 27, 1962: 27.20 ft, minor floodingMar 12, 1963: 44.50 ft, major floodingJan 11, 1965: 29.90 ft, minor floodingMar 26, 1965: 27.00 ft, minor floodingMar 7, 1967: 40.70 ft, moderate floodingMay 28, 1968: 27.73 ft, minor flooding; 20,000 cubic feet per secondDec 31, 1969: 31.54 ft, minor flooding; 22,600 cubic feet per secondFeb 16, 1970: 28.77 ft, minor floodingMay 7, 1971: 29.97 ft, minor flooding; 23,300 cubic feet per secondJan 21, 1972: 27.15 ft, minor floodingFeb 26, 1972: 29.96 ft, minor floodingMar 17, 1973: 34.30 ft, moderate flooding; 23,800 cubic feet per secondMay 17, 1973: 32.65 ft, moderate floodingJan 12, 1974: 37.37 ft, moderate flooding; 29,200 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1975: 32.01 ft, moderate flooding; 23,100 cubic feet per secondJan 26, 1978: 37.80 ft, moderate flooding; 36,500 cubic feet per secondJan 22, 1979: 29.32 ft, minor flooding; 21,300 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1981: 32.79 ft, moderate flooding; 26,200 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1984: 44.94 ft, major flooding; 49,100 cubic feet per secondFeb 2, 1985: 22.77 ft, below flood stage; 13,900 cubic feet per secondApr 9, 1987: 28.66 ft, minor flooding; 19,800 cubic feet per secondMay 6, 1989: 24.69 ft, below flood stage; 15,600 cubic feet per secondOct 17, 1989: 29.53 ft, minor flooding; 20,700 cubic feet per secondDec 3, 1991: 22.79 ft, below flood stage; 13,900 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 1993: 24.33 ft, below flood stageFeb 12, 1994: 31.40 ft, minor floodingMar 28, 1994: 29.04 ft, minor floodingJan 19, 1996: 21.39 ft, below flood stage; 14,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 9, 1996: 22.73 ft, below flood stage; 15,400 cubic feet per secondMay 16, 1996: 33.46 ft, moderate flooding; 26,800 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 2002: 42.15 ft, moderate flooding; 44,700 cubic feet per secondFeb 16, 2003: 38.37 ft, moderate flooding; 33,740 cubic feet per secondFeb 23, 2003: 29.75 ft, minor flooding; 23,350 cubic feet per secondNov 20, 2003: 29.05 ft, minor flooding; 22,500 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 2007: 35.20 ft, moderate flooding; 29,800 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 2009: 40.73 ft, moderate flooding; 36,530 cubic feet per secondJan 31, 2013: 28.27 ft, minor flooding; 22,744 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 2015: 39.65 ft, moderate flooding; 38,769 cubic feet per secondFeb 11, 2018: 35.93 ft, moderate flooding; 33,205 cubic feet per secondFeb 7, 2020: 34.18 ft, moderate flooding; 30,719 cubic feet per secondMar 2, 2021: 39.40 ft, moderate flooding; 38,386 cubic feet per secondMar 29, 2021: 27.67 ft, minor flooding; 22,017 cubic feet per secondJan 2, 2022: 28.14 ft, minor flooding; 22,612 cubic feet per secondFeb 18, 2023: 28.73 ft, minor flooding; 23,365 cubic feet per secondFeb 16, 2025: 48.35 ft, major flooding; 75,181 cubic feet per second Highest, 48.35 ft, Feb 16, 2025 1960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Tug Fork River at Williamson 1950s: 3 1960s: 7 1970s: 10 10 1980s: 4 1990s: 3 2000s: 6 2010s: 3 2020s: 6 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.
  3. 14 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 42.00 ft on Jul 29, 1875; 31.00 ft on Jun 1, 1901; 30.40 ft on Mar 27, 1913; 30.30 ft on Mar 4, 1917; 38.10 ft on Jan 19, 1918; 34.00 ft on Dec 12, 1926; and more.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Tug Fork River at Williamson
1Feb 16, 202548.35+21.35Major75,181
2May 8, 198444.94+17.94Major49,100
3Mar 12, 196344.50+17.50Major—
4Jan 30, 195743.60+16.60Major—
5May 3, 200242.15+15.15Moderate44,700
6May 10, 200940.73+13.73Moderate36,530
7Mar 7, 196740.70+13.70Moderate—
8Mar 5, 201539.65+12.65Moderate38,769
9Mar 2, 202139.40+12.40Moderate38,386
10Feb 16, 200338.37+11.37Moderate33,740
11Jan 26, 197837.80+10.80Moderate36,500
12Jan 12, 197437.37+10.37Moderate29,200
13May 7, 195836.30+9.30Moderate—
14Feb 11, 201835.93+8.93Moderate33,205
15Apr 16, 200735.20+8.20Moderate29,800
16Mar 17, 197334.30+7.30Moderate23,800
17Feb 7, 202034.18+7.18Moderate30,719
18May 16, 199633.46+6.46Moderate26,800
19Jun 7, 198132.79+5.79Moderate26,200
20May 17, 197332.65+5.65Moderate—
21Mar 30, 197532.01+5.01Moderate23,100
22Dec 31, 196931.54+4.54Minor22,600
23Feb 12, 199431.40+4.40Minor—
24Apr 16, 195631.30+4.30Minor—
25May 7, 197129.97+2.97Minor23,300
26Feb 26, 197229.96+2.96Minor—
27Jan 11, 196529.90+2.90Minor—
28Feb 23, 200329.75+2.75Minor23,350
29Oct 17, 198929.53+2.53Minor20,700
30Jan 22, 197929.32+2.32Minor21,300
31Nov 20, 200329.05+2.05Minor22,500
32Mar 28, 199429.04+2.04Minor—
33Feb 16, 197028.77+1.77Minor—
34Feb 18, 202328.73+1.73Minor23,365
35Apr 9, 198728.66+1.66Minor19,800
36Jan 31, 201328.27+1.27Minor22,744
37Jan 2, 202228.14+1.14Minor22,612
38May 28, 196827.73+0.73Minor20,000
39Mar 29, 202127.67+0.67Minor22,017
40Feb 27, 196227.20+0.20Minor—
41Jan 21, 197227.15+0.15Minor—
42Mar 26, 196527.000.00Minor—
43May 6, 198924.69−2.31Below flood stage15,600
44Mar 5, 199324.33−2.67Below flood stage—
45Dec 3, 199122.79−4.21Below flood stage13,900
46Feb 2, 198522.77−4.23Below flood stage13,900
47Feb 9, 199622.73−4.27Below flood stage15,400
48Jan 19, 199621.39−5.61Below flood stage14,000

The worst floods along the Tug Fork River

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

February 16, 2025: 48.35 ft here, major flooding

  • KermitWV · Feb 17, 2025 · 51.28 ft · Major · its highest
  • LitwarWV · Feb 16, 2025 · 30.97 ft · Major · its highest
  • WelchWV · Feb 16, 2025 · 22.10 ft · Major

May 3, 2002: 42.15 ft here, moderate flooding

  • WelchWV · May 2, 2002 · 22.10 ft · Major · its highest

Gauges on the Tug Fork River

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

Flood gauges on the Tug Fork River
WelchWV17.022.10 ft, May 2, 20022
LitwarWV24.030.97 ft, Feb 16, 20251
Williamson this gaugeKY27.048.35 ft, Feb 16, 20254
KermitWV38.051.28 ft, Feb 17, 20251

Other gauges in Pike County

Flood gauges in Pike County
Pikeville35.052.72 ft, Jan 30, 19574
Elkhorn City21.024.80 ft, Apr 4, 19771

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge WILW2, 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.