Rouge River at Birmingham

Highest listed crest 8.70 ftFlood stage 5.5 ft9 crests since 1968

The Rouge River at Birmingham crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 9 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1968 to 2020. The highest, 8.70 ft on June 26, 1968, was major flooding, 3.20 feet above flood stage. 2 other gauges on the Rouge River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 2 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 8.70 ft; June 26, 1968; 1,390 cubic feet per second
Flood stage: 5.5 ft; Major flooding from 8.0 ft
Crests at major: 1; 26th of 98 gauges in Michigan
Most recent flood crest: January 11, 2020; 6.06 ft, moderate flooding
Location: Oakland County; Near Birmingham (0.4 mi), Beverly Hills (1.8 mi), Clawson (3.8 mi)
Identifiers: NWS BHRM4; USGS 04166000; out of service

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Rouge River at Birmingham

Action stage	4.5	2	Aug 12, 2014	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	5.5	5	Feb 20, 2018	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage	6.0	1	Jan 11, 2020	Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage	8.0	1	Jun 26, 1968	Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

9 crests from 1968 to 2020. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

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, Rouge River at Birmingham

1	Jun 26, 1968	8.70	+3.20	Major	1,390
2	Jan 11, 2020	6.06	+0.56	Moderate	768
3	May 26, 2011	5.98	+0.48	Minor	732
4	Feb 20, 2018	5.94	+0.44	Minor	743
5	Feb 9, 2001	5.92	+0.42	Minor	741
6	Jun 25, 2000	5.78	+0.28	Minor	708
7	Sep 15, 2008	5.78	+0.28	Minor	687
8	Feb 12, 2009	4.74	−0.76	Action	—
9	Aug 12, 2014	4.68	−0.82	Action	463

The worst floods along the Rouge River

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

June 26, 1968: 8.70 ft here, major flooding

DetroitMI · Jun 26, 1968 · 21.40 ft · Major · its highest
SouthfieldMI · Jun 26, 1968 · 19.04 ft · Major · its highest

January 11, 2020: 6.06 ft here, moderate flooding

DetroitMI · Jan 12, 2020 · 17.56 ft · Minor
SouthfieldMI · Jan 12, 2020 · 13.85 ft · Minor

May 26, 2011: 5.98 ft here, minor flooding

DetroitMI · May 26, 2011 · 20.23 ft · Major
SouthfieldMI · May 26, 2011 · 14.16 ft · Moderate

Gauges on the Rouge River

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

Flood gauges on the Rouge River

Birmingham this gauge	MI	5.5	8.70 ft, Jun 26, 1968	1
Southfield	MI	12.0	19.04 ft, Jun 26, 1968	1
Detroit	MI	15.0	21.40 ft, Jun 26, 1968	2

Other gauges in Oakland County

Flood gauges in Oakland County

Southfield	12.0	19.04 ft, Jun 26, 1968	1

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge BHRM4, 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.