Bess Branch at Alligator Park

Highest listed crest 23.74 ftFlood stage 20.0 ft1 crests since 2020

The Bess Branch at Alligator Park crested above flood stage 1 time among the 1 crests the National Weather Service lists from 2020 to 2020. The highest, 23.74 ft on April 29, 2020, was moderate flooding, 3.74 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 23.74 ft; April 29, 2020
Flood stage: 20.0 ft; Major flooding from 26.0 ft
Crests at major: 0; 1 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest: April 29, 2020; 23.74 ft, moderate flooding
Location: Calcasieu Parish; Louisiana
Identifiers: NWS CSSL1; 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, Bess Branch at Alligator Park

Action stage	18.0	0	—	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	20.0	0	—	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage	23.0	1	Apr 29, 2020	Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage	26.0	0	—	Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

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

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, Bess Branch at Alligator Park

1	Apr 29, 2020	23.74	+3.74	Moderate	—

Other gauges in Calcasieu Parish

Flood gauges in Calcasieu Parish

Lorrain Park	4.0	7.51 ft, Aug 17, 2016	1
Goos Ferry Road	2.0	7.46 ft, Oct 14, 2020	1
Saltwater Barrier	4.0	13.00 ft, Oct 1, 1913	6
Sam Houston Jones State Park	5.0	14.40 ft, Dec 29, 1982	8
White Oak Park	2.0	9.61 ft, Sep 2, 2017	5
Dave Dugas Road	5.0	13.15 ft, Jan 14, 2016	1
Common Street	8.0	11.53 ft, May 1, 2016	2
Anthony Ferry Road	4.5	7.47 ft, Oct 13, 2020	0
Coffey Road	13.0	16.01 ft, Jun 4, 2016	0
Tide Station (LCH) at Lake Charles	3.0	9.50 ft, Sep 13, 2008	2
Dunn Ferry Road	5.0	14.86 ft, Aug 31, 2017	2

Calcasieu Parish: every hazard · River floods across the country · Louisiana

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CSSL1, 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.