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St. John River at Fort Kent

Highest listed crest 30.07 ftFlood stage 22.5 ft43 crests since 1933

The St. John River at Fort Kent crested at major flood stage 4 times among the 43 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1933 to 2026. The highest, 30.07 ft on April 30, 2008, was major flooding, 7.57 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
30.07 ft
April 30, 2008; 183,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
22.5 ft
Major flooding from 26.5 ft
Crests at major
4
4th of 55 gauges in Maine
Most recent flood crest
April 23, 2019
23.39 ft, minor flooding
Location
Aroostook County
Maine

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, St. John River at Fort Kent
Action stage18.020Apr 20, 2026The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)22.57Apr 23, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage24.57Apr 19, 1983Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage26.54Apr 30, 2008Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

43 crests from 1933 to 2026. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the St. John River at Fort Kent, 1933 to 2026 101520253035ft Flood stage 22.5 ftMajor 26.5 ft May 5, 1933: 25.10 ft, moderate flooding; 121,000 cubic feet per secondMay 11, 1939: 24.53 ft, moderate flooding; 115,000 cubic feet per secondApr 22, 1941: 21.35 ft, action stage; 109,000 cubic feet per secondMay 5, 1942: 24.04 ft, minor flooding; 115,000 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 1947: 21.65 ft, action stage; 114,000 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 1953: 20.41 ft, action stageApr 24, 1954: 20.06 ft, action stage; 97,000 cubic feet per secondApr 26, 1958: 24.55 ft, moderate flooding; 118,000 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 1960: 19.04 ft, action stageMay 16, 1961: 25.30 ft, moderate flooding; 131,000 cubic feet per secondMay 11, 1969: 25.11 ft, moderate flooding; 129,000 cubic feet per secondApr 30, 1973: 25.76 ft, moderate flooding; 136,000 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 1974: 26.95 ft, major flooding; 148,000 cubic feet per secondApr 30, 1979: 27.31 ft, major flooding; 151,000 cubic feet per secondAug 7, 1981: 18.79 ft, action stage; 88,900 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 1982: 20.28 ft, action stage; 103,000 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1983: 26.33 ft, moderate flooding; 141,000 cubic feet per secondApr 27, 1983: 23.25 ft, minor flooding; 133,000 cubic feet per secondMay 2, 1984: 21.05 ft, action stage; 110,000 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 1987: 21.44 ft, action stage; 114,000 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 1990: 18.40 ft, action stage; 85,400 cubic feet per secondApr 11, 1991: 23.27 ft, minor floodingApr 28, 1991: 18.62 ft, action stage; 87,400 cubic feet per secondApr 24, 1992: 20.21 ft, action stage; 102,000 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 1993: 18.53 ft, action stage; 86,600 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 1994: 26.60 ft, major flooding; 144,000 cubic feet per secondApr 25, 1996: 20.87 ft, action stage; 109,000 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 1997: 18.53 ft, action stage; 86,600 cubic feet per secondMay 18, 1997: 20.33 ft, action stage; 103,000 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 1998: 23.88 ft, minor flooding; 114,000 cubic feet per secondApr 26, 2005: 23.89 ft, minor flooding; 116,000 cubic feet per secondApr 25, 2007: 18.09 ft, action stageApr 20, 2008: 19.19 ft, action stageApr 30, 2008: 30.07 ft, major flooding; 183,000 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2018: 22.51 ft, minor flooding; 127,000 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 2019: 23.39 ft, minor flooding; 137,000 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 2020: 17.25 ft, below flood stage; 75,100 cubic feet per secondApr 11, 2021: 14.16 ft, below flood stage; 50,500 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 2022: 17.99 ft, below flood stage; 81,600 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 2023: 19.61 ft, action stage; 96,800 cubic feet per secondDec 20, 2023: 15.56 ft, below flood stage; 61,100 cubic feet per secondApr 15, 2024: 17.15 ft, below flood stage; 74,200 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 2026: 19.68 ft, action stage; 97,400 cubic feet per second Highest, 30.07 ft, Apr 30, 2008 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, St. John River at Fort Kent 1930s: 2 1940s: 1 1950s: 1 1960s: 2 1970s: 3 3 1980s: 2 1990s: 3 2000s: 2 2010s: 2 2020s: 0 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.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, St. John River at Fort Kent
1Apr 30, 200830.07+7.57Major183,000
2Apr 30, 197927.31+4.81Major151,000
3May 1, 197426.95+4.45Major148,000
4Apr 17, 199426.60+4.10Major144,000
5Apr 19, 198326.33+3.83Moderate141,000
6Apr 30, 197325.76+3.26Moderate136,000
7May 16, 196125.30+2.80Moderate131,000
8May 11, 196925.11+2.61Moderate129,000
9May 5, 193325.10+2.60Moderate121,000
10Apr 26, 195824.55+2.05Moderate118,000
11May 11, 193924.53+2.03Moderate115,000
12May 5, 194224.04+1.54Minor115,000
13Apr 26, 200523.89+1.39Minor116,000
14Apr 2, 199823.88+1.38Minor114,000
15Apr 23, 201923.39+0.89Minor137,000
16Apr 11, 199123.27+0.77Minor—
17Apr 27, 198323.25+0.75Minor133,000
18May 1, 201822.51+0.01Minor127,000
19May 9, 194721.65−0.85Action114,000
20Apr 2, 198721.44−1.06Action114,000
21Apr 22, 194121.35−1.15Action109,000
22May 2, 198421.05−1.45Action110,000
23Apr 25, 199620.87−1.63Action109,000
24Mar 31, 195320.41−2.09Action—
25May 18, 199720.33−2.17Action103,000
26Apr 29, 198220.28−2.22Action103,000
27Apr 24, 199220.21−2.29Action102,000
28Apr 24, 195420.06−2.44Action97,000
29Apr 20, 202619.68−2.82Action97,400
30Apr 19, 202319.61−2.89Action96,800
31Apr 20, 200819.19−3.31Action—
32Apr 20, 196019.04−3.46Action—
33Aug 7, 198118.79−3.71Action88,900
34Apr 28, 199118.62−3.88Action87,400
35Apr 13, 199318.53−3.97Action86,600
36May 3, 199718.53−3.97Action86,600
37Apr 29, 199018.40−4.10Action85,400
38Apr 25, 200718.09−4.41Action—
39Apr 17, 202217.99−4.51Below flood stage81,600
40May 3, 202017.25−5.25Below flood stage75,100
41Apr 15, 202417.15−5.35Below flood stage74,200
42Dec 20, 202315.56−6.94Below flood stage61,100
43Apr 11, 202114.16−8.34Below flood stage50,500

The worst floods along the St. John River

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

May 1, 1974: 26.95 ft here, major flooding

  • DickeyME · Apr 30, 1974 · 29.16 ft · Minor

April 17, 1994: 26.60 ft here, major flooding

Gauges on the St. John River

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

Flood gauges on the St. John River
Nine Mile BridgeME15.023.00 ft, Apr 11, 19911
DickeyME25.037.89 ft, Apr 9, 19911
Fort Kent this gaugeME22.530.07 ft, Apr 30, 20084

Other gauges in Aroostook County

Flood gauges in Aroostook County
Allagash15.019.78 ft, Apr 10, 19912
Masardis17.018.70 ft, Apr 9, 20090
Washburn14.021.14 ft, Apr 18, 20152
Depot Mountain13.515.62 ft, Apr 1, 19870
Fort Kent11.013.93 ft, Apr 30, 20081
Caribou9.511.38 ft, Apr 27, 20180
South Branch near Houlton8.011.04 ft, Apr 4, 20050
Houlton4.85.58 ft, Dec 14, 20100
Connors15.015.93 ft, May 1, 20080
Dickey25.037.89 ft, Apr 9, 19911
Nine Mile Bridge15.023.00 ft, Apr 11, 19911
Presque Isle7.58.34 ft, Apr 16, 20140
Reed Plantation10.010.27 ft, Apr 16, 20140

Aroostook County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Maine

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge FTKM1, 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.