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Pine River at Alma

Highest listed crest 12.82 ftFlood stage 8.0 ft86 crests since 1931

The Pine River at Alma crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 86 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1931 to 2020. The highest, 12.82 ft on September 12, 1986, was major flooding, 4.82 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
12.82 ft
September 12, 1986; 5,160 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
8.0 ft
Major flooding from 12.0 ft
Crests at major
1
26th of 98 gauges in Michigan
Most recent flood crest
May 19, 2020
10.30 ft, moderate flooding
Location
Gratiot County
Michigan

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Pine River at Alma
Action stage7.015Apr 1, 2008The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)8.023Dec 30, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage10.05May 19, 2020Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage12.01Sep 12, 1986Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

86 crests from 1931 to 2020. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Pine River at Alma, 1931 to 2020 2468101214ft Flood stage 8.0 ftMajor 12.0 ft Apr 1, 1931: 2.80 ft, below flood stage; 353 cubic feet per secondFeb 12, 1932: 5.56 ft, below flood stage; 1,060 cubic feet per secondMay 2, 1933: 6.35 ft, below flood stage; 1,400 cubic feet per secondMar 17, 1934: 5.72 ft, below flood stage; 1,100 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 1935: 9.50 ft, minor flooding; 3,560 cubic feet per secondMar 18, 1936: 5.08 ft, below flood stage; 965 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 1937: 4.51 ft, below flood stage; 720 cubic feet per secondFeb 6, 1938: 10.43 ft, moderate flooding; 4,070 cubic feet per secondApr 22, 1939: 4.23 ft, below flood stage; 660 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1940: 6.19 ft, below flood stage; 1,330 cubic feet per secondMar 17, 1942: 7.64 ft, action stage; 2,210 cubic feet per secondMar 16, 1943: 7.89 ft, action stage; 2,450 cubic feet per secondFeb 26, 1944: 5.36 ft, below flood stage; 960 cubic feet per secondJun 4, 1945: 7.29 ft, action stage; 1,840 cubic feet per secondMar 8, 1946: 10.02 ft, moderate flooding; 3,650 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1947: 7.25 ft, action stage; 1,820 cubic feet per secondMar 19, 1948: 10.81 ft, moderate flooding; 4,400 cubic feet per secondFeb 28, 1949: 5.90 ft, below flood stage; 1,200 cubic feet per secondMar 28, 1950: 9.48 ft, minor flooding; 3,210 cubic feet per secondNov 14, 1951: 6.44 ft, below flood stage; 1,320 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 1953: 6.28 ft, below flood stage; 1,270 cubic feet per secondApr 27, 1954: 7.26 ft, action stage; 1,750 cubic feet per secondMar 11, 1955: 6.01 ft, below flood stage; 1,150 cubic feet per secondMay 6, 1956: 7.43 ft, action stage; 1,800 cubic feet per secondJul 12, 1957: 4.88 ft, below flood stage; 675 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1959: 8.48 ft, minor flooding; 2,400 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 1960: 8.60 ft, minor flooding; 2,480 cubic feet per secondMar 27, 1961: 4.57 ft, below flood stage; 658 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 1962: 6.15 ft, below flood stage; 1,210 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 1963: 4.63 ft, below flood stage; 622 cubic feet per secondMay 2, 1964: 4.03 ft, below flood stage; 480 cubic feet per secondApr 12, 1965: 9.03 ft, minor flooding; 2,780 cubic feet per secondFeb 11, 1966: 5.74 ft, below flood stage; 1,050 cubic feet per secondApr 22, 1967: 8.69 ft, minor flooding; 2,540 cubic feet per secondFeb 3, 1968: 7.22 ft, action stage; 1,710 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 1969: 5.82 ft, below flood stage; 1,020 cubic feet per secondApr 9, 1970: 5.66 ft, below flood stage; 964 cubic feet per secondMar 22, 1972: 7.15 ft, action stage; 1,680 cubic feet per secondJan 22, 1973: 6.88 ft, below flood stage; 1,540 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 1974: 7.27 ft, action stage; 1,790 cubic feet per secondSep 3, 1975: 8.95 ft, minor flooding; 2,720 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 1976: 8.82 ft, minor flooding; 2,630 cubic feet per secondSep 19, 1977: 6.03 ft, below flood stage; 1,120 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 1978: 8.82 ft, minor flooding; 2,630 cubic feet per secondMar 19, 1979: 5.11 ft, below flood stage; 808 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 1980: 5.27 ft, below flood stage; 814 cubic feet per secondFeb 19, 1981: 6.34 ft, below flood stage; 1,270 cubic feet per secondMar 16, 1982: 7.23 ft, action stage; 1,820 cubic feet per secondApr 14, 1983: 6.49 ft, below flood stage; 1,460 cubic feet per secondFeb 28, 1984: 5.31 ft, below flood stage; 936 cubic feet per secondMar 12, 1985: 7.64 ft, action stage; 2,080 cubic feet per secondSep 12, 1986: 12.82 ft, major flooding; 5,160 cubic feet per secondOct 4, 1987: 8.27 ft, minor flooding; 2,190 cubic feet per secondApr 7, 1988: 5.73 ft, below flood stage; 1,070 cubic feet per secondJun 23, 1989: 6.79 ft, below flood stage; 1,370 cubic feet per secondMar 13, 1990: 8.63 ft, minor flooding; 2,380 cubic feet per secondApr 9, 1991: 7.49 ft, action stage; 1,800 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 1992: 5.90 ft, below flood stage; 1,130 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1993: 6.70 ft, below flood stage; 1,450 cubic feet per secondFeb 20, 1994: 7.97 ft, action stage; 2,040 cubic feet per secondNov 9, 1995: 5.65 ft, below flood stage; 1,040 cubic feet per secondMay 21, 1996: 6.35 ft, below flood stage; 1,310 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 1997: 9.27 ft, minor flooding; 2,740 cubic feet per secondMar 22, 1998: 5.81 ft, below flood stage; 1,100 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 1999: 5.39 ft, below flood stage; 952 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 2000: 5.89 ft, below flood stage; 5,160 cubic feet per secondMay 16, 2001: 7.34 ft, action stage; 1,620 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 2002: 6.79 ft, below flood stage; 1,490 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 2003: 5.19 ft, below flood stageMar 5, 2004: 8.26 ft, minor flooding; 2,180 cubic feet per secondJan 13, 2005: 6.98 ft, below flood stage; 1,570 cubic feet per secondMar 13, 2006: 8.16 ft, minor flooding; 2,130 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 2007: 6.57 ft, below flood stage; 1,390 cubic feet per secondApr 1, 2008: 7.52 ft, action stage; 1,820 cubic feet per secondApr 26, 2009: 9.34 ft, minor flooding; 2,790 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 2010: 6.24 ft, below flood stage; 1,260 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 2011: 8.40 ft, minor flooding; 2,260 cubic feet per secondApr 12, 2013: 9.60 ft, minor flooding; 2,913 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 2013: 10.15 ft, moderate flooding; 3,266 cubic feet per secondJul 7, 2014: 8.22 ft, minor flooding; 2,131 cubic feet per secondApr 7, 2017: 8.04 ft, minor flooding; 2,040 cubic feet per secondJun 26, 2017: 8.80 ft, minor flooding; 2,440 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 2018: 8.46 ft, minor flooding; 2,259 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 2019: 8.35 ft, minor flooding; 2,200 cubic feet per secondDec 30, 2019: 8.50 ft, minor flooding; 2,280 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 2020: 10.30 ft, moderate flooding Highest, 12.82 ft, Sep 12, 1986 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Pine River at Alma 1930s: 2 1940s: 2 1950s: 2 1960s: 3 1970s: 3 1980s: 2 1990s: 2 2000s: 3 2010s: 9 9 2020s: 1 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

The 50 highest of 86 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Pine River at Alma
1Sep 12, 198612.82+4.82Major5,160
2Mar 19, 194810.81+2.81Moderate4,400
3Feb 6, 193810.43+2.43Moderate4,070
4May 19, 202010.30+2.30Moderate—
5Apr 18, 201310.15+2.15Moderate3,266
6Mar 8, 194610.02+2.02Moderate3,650
7Apr 12, 20139.60+1.60Minor2,913
8Mar 5, 19359.50+1.50Minor3,560
9Mar 28, 19509.48+1.48Minor3,210
10Apr 26, 20099.34+1.34Minor2,790
11Feb 21, 19979.27+1.27Minor2,740
12Apr 12, 19659.03+1.03Minor2,780
13Sep 3, 19758.95+0.95Minor2,720
14Mar 5, 19768.82+0.82Minor2,630
15Apr 4, 19788.82+0.82Minor2,630
16Jun 26, 20178.80+0.80Minor2,440
17Apr 22, 19678.69+0.69Minor2,540
18Mar 13, 19908.63+0.63Minor2,380
19Mar 31, 19608.60+0.60Minor2,480
20Dec 30, 20198.50+0.50Minor2,280
21Apr 3, 19598.48+0.48Minor2,400
22Feb 21, 20188.46+0.46Minor2,259
23Apr 28, 20118.40+0.40Minor2,260
24Mar 15, 20198.35+0.35Minor2,200
25Oct 4, 19878.27+0.27Minor2,190
26Mar 5, 20048.26+0.26Minor2,180
27Jul 7, 20148.22+0.22Minor2,131
28Mar 13, 20068.16+0.16Minor2,130
29Apr 7, 20178.04+0.04Minor2,040
30Feb 20, 19947.97−0.03Action2,040
31Mar 16, 19437.89−0.11Action2,450
32Mar 17, 19427.64−0.36Action2,210
33Mar 12, 19857.64−0.36Action2,080
34Apr 1, 20087.52−0.48Action1,820
35Apr 9, 19917.49−0.51Action1,800
36May 6, 19567.43−0.57Action1,800
37May 16, 20017.34−0.66Action1,620
38Jun 4, 19457.29−0.71Action1,840
39Mar 5, 19747.27−0.73Action1,790
40Apr 27, 19547.26−0.74Action1,750
41Apr 6, 19477.25−0.75Action1,820
42Mar 16, 19827.23−0.77Action1,820
43Feb 3, 19687.22−0.78Action1,710
44Mar 22, 19727.15−0.85Action1,680
45Jan 13, 20056.98−1.02Below flood stage1,570
46Jan 22, 19736.88−1.12Below flood stage1,540
47Jun 23, 19896.79−1.21Below flood stage1,370
48Mar 9, 20026.79−1.21Below flood stage1,490
49Mar 30, 19936.70−1.30Below flood stage1,450
50Mar 14, 20076.57−1.43Below flood stage1,390

Gauges on the Pine River

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

Flood gauges on the Pine River
Alma this gaugeMI8.012.82 ft, Sep 12, 19861
MidlandMI12.012.08 ft, Feb 2, 19680

Gratiot County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Michigan

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge ALMM4, 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.