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Knife River (ND) near Hazen

Highest listed crest 27.79 ftFlood stage 21.0 ft56 crests since 1930

The Knife River (ND) near Hazen crested at major flood stage 10 times among the 56 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1930 to 2021. The highest, 27.79 ft on March 24, 2009, was major flooding, 6.79 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Knife River (ND) crested above flood stage within a week of it, 1 at its own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
27.79 ft
March 24, 2009; 27,400 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
21.0 ft
Major flooding from 25.0 ft
Crests at major
10
12th of 54 gauges in North Dakota
Most recent flood crest
March 23, 2019
23.56 ft, minor flooding
Location
Mercer County
North Dakota

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Knife River (ND) near Hazen
Action stage19.010Aug 19, 2014The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)21.019Mar 23, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage24.04Mar 4, 1986Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage25.010Mar 24, 2009Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

56 crests from 1930 to 2021. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Knife River (ND) near Hazen, 1930 to 2021 51015202530ft Flood stage 21.0 ftMajor 25.0 ft Feb 21, 1930: 23.20 ft, minor flooding; 3,070 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 1933: 23.20 ft, minor floodingJul 5, 1938: 23.00 ft, minor flooding; 7,540 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 1939: 24.47 ft, moderate flooding; 9,300 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 1941: 20.23 ft, action stage; 4,110 cubic feet per secondMar 26, 1943: 26.30 ft, major flooding; 26,500 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1944: 23.39 ft, minor flooding; 8,010 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 1945: 23.99 ft, minor flooding; 8,690 cubic feet per secondMar 3, 1946: 19.30 ft, action stage; 3,500 cubic feet per secondJun 25, 1947: 21.70 ft, minor flooding; 6,000 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 1948: 23.62 ft, minor flooding; 7,070 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1949: 23.30 ft, minor flooding; 7,760 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 1950: 25.93 ft, major flooding; 22,700 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1951: 25.36 ft, major flooding; 9,000 cubic feet per secondApr 7, 1952: 25.83 ft, major floodingMar 21, 1956: 23.76 ft, minor flooding; 6,630 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 1959: 20.14 ft, action stage; 4,930 cubic feet per secondMar 27, 1960: 23.13 ft, minor flooding; 7,230 cubic feet per secondJun 18, 1964: 20.17 ft, action stage; 5,170 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 1966: 27.01 ft, major flooding; 35,300 cubic feet per secondMar 25, 1967: 23.88 ft, minor flooding; 7,780 cubic feet per secondApr 7, 1967: 24.75 ft, moderate floodingApr 7, 1969: 24.75 ft, moderate flooding; 11,800 cubic feet per secondMay 11, 1970: 23.83 ft, minor flooding; 8,180 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 1972: 26.17 ft, major flooding; 19,000 cubic feet per secondMar 2, 1973: 21.44 ft, minor flooding; 3,900 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 1975: 22.60 ft, minor flooding; 6,600 cubic feet per secondMar 27, 1978: 25.10 ft, major flooding; 11,000 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 1979: 20.26 ft, action stage; 5,440 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 1982: 25.14 ft, major flooding; 10,500 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 1982: 22.64 ft, minor floodingMar 13, 1983: 22.83 ft, minor floodingMar 4, 1986: 24.00 ft, moderate flooding; 8,800 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 1987: 23.80 ft, minor flooding; 8,550 cubic feet per secondFeb 22, 1995: 21.87 ft, minor flooding; 5,880 cubic feet per secondApr 10, 1996: 20.85 ft, action stage; 5,880 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 1997: 26.92 ft, major flooding; 20,500 cubic feet per secondMar 16, 1999: 16.80 ft, below flood stageMar 14, 2001: 18.03 ft, below flood stageMar 17, 2003: 18.18 ft, below flood stageMar 11, 2004: 19.08 ft, action stage; 5,300 cubic feet per secondJul 1, 2005: 9.27 ft, below flood stageMar 12, 2007: 15.74 ft, below flood stageMar 24, 2009: 27.79 ft, major flooding; 27,400 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 2010: 20.39 ft, action stage; 6,610 cubic feet per secondApr 8, 2011: 20.97 ft, action stage; 6,850 cubic feet per secondMar 12, 2012: 5.22 ft, below flood stage; 587 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 2013: 18.03 ft, below flood stage; 5,130 cubic feet per secondAug 19, 2014: 20.48 ft, action stage; 6,540 cubic feet per secondMar 6, 2015: 10.85 ft, below flood stage; 2,120 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 2016: 6.14 ft, below flood stage; 761 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 2017: 9.90 ft, below flood stage; 1,910 cubic feet per secondMar 28, 2018: 15.27 ft, below flood stage; 4,080 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 2019: 23.56 ft, minor flooding; 9,110 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 2020: 11.33 ft, below flood stage; 2,430 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 2021: 6.06 ft, below flood stage; 775 cubic feet per second Highest, 27.79 ft, Mar 24, 2009 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Knife River (ND) near Hazen 1930s: 4 1940s: 6 6 1950s: 4 1960s: 5 1970s: 5 1980s: 5 1990s: 2 2000s: 1 2010s: 1 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

The 50 highest of 56 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Knife River (ND) near Hazen
1Mar 24, 200927.79+6.79Major27,400
2Jun 24, 196627.01+6.01Major35,300
3Mar 23, 199726.92+5.92Major20,500
4Mar 26, 194326.30+5.30Major26,500
5Mar 15, 197226.17+5.17Major19,000
6Apr 17, 195025.93+4.93Major22,700
7Apr 7, 195225.83+4.83Major—
8Mar 30, 195125.36+4.36Major9,000
9Mar 31, 198225.14+4.14Major10,500
10Mar 27, 197825.10+4.10Major11,000
11Apr 7, 196724.75+3.75Moderate—
12Apr 7, 196924.75+3.75Moderate11,800
13Mar 24, 193924.47+3.47Moderate9,300
14Mar 4, 198624.00+3.00Moderate8,800
15Mar 15, 194523.99+2.99Minor8,690
16Mar 25, 196723.88+2.88Minor7,780
17May 11, 197023.83+2.83Minor8,180
18Mar 23, 198723.80+2.80Minor8,550
19Mar 21, 195623.76+2.76Minor6,630
20Mar 24, 194823.62+2.62Minor7,070
21Mar 23, 201923.56+2.56Minor9,110
22Apr 3, 194423.39+2.39Minor8,010
23Apr 6, 194923.30+2.30Minor7,760
24Feb 21, 193023.20+2.20Minor3,070
25Mar 21, 193323.20+2.20Minor—
26Mar 27, 196023.13+2.13Minor7,230
27Jul 5, 193823.00+2.00Minor7,540
28Mar 13, 198322.83+1.83Minor—
29Apr 13, 198222.64+1.64Minor—
30May 1, 197522.60+1.60Minor6,600
31Feb 22, 199521.87+0.87Minor5,880
32Jun 25, 194721.70+0.70Minor6,000
33Mar 2, 197321.44+0.44Minor3,900
34Apr 8, 201120.97−0.03Action6,850
35Apr 10, 199620.85−0.15Action5,880
36Aug 19, 201420.48−0.52Action6,540
37Mar 31, 201020.39−0.61Action6,610
38Apr 18, 197920.26−0.74Action5,440
39Jun 9, 194120.23−0.77Action4,110
40Jun 18, 196420.17−0.83Action5,170
41Mar 24, 195920.14−0.86Action4,930
42Mar 3, 194619.30−1.70Action3,500
43Mar 11, 200419.08−1.92Action5,300
44Mar 17, 200318.18−2.82Below flood stage—
45Mar 14, 200118.03−2.97Below flood stage—
46Jun 2, 201318.03−2.97Below flood stage5,130
47Mar 16, 199916.80−4.20Below flood stage—
48Mar 12, 200715.74−5.26Below flood stage—
49Mar 28, 201815.27−5.73Below flood stage4,080
50Mar 4, 202011.33−9.67Below flood stage2,430

The worst floods along the Knife River (ND)

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

March 24, 2009: 27.79 ft here, major flooding

  • Golden ValleyND · Mar 22, 2009 · 27.73 ft · Moderate · its highest

March 23, 1997: 26.92 ft here, major flooding

  • Golden ValleyND · Mar 23, 1997 · 27.00 ft · Moderate
  • ManningND · Mar 21, 1997 · 17.05 ft · Moderate

March 26, 1943: 26.30 ft here, major flooding

Gauges on the Knife River (ND)

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

Flood gauges on the Knife River (ND)
ManningND15.017.63 ft, Mar 18, 20030
Golden ValleyND24.027.73 ft, Mar 22, 20090
Hazen this gaugeND21.027.79 ft, Mar 24, 200910

Other gauges in Mercer County

Flood gauges in Mercer County
Golden Valley24.027.73 ft, Mar 22, 20090
Zap14.021.29 ft, Mar 23, 20095

Mercer County: every hazard · River floods across the country · North Dakota

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge HZNN8, 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.