Ohio River near Huntington

Highest listed crest 57.52 ftFlood stage 50.0 ft24 crests since 1959

The Ohio River near Huntington crested above flood stage 13 times among the 24 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1959 to 2025. The highest, 57.52 ft on March 5, 1997, was moderate flooding, 7.52 feet above flood stage. 27 other gauges on the Ohio River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 57.52 ft; March 5, 1997
Flood stage: 50.0 ft; Major flooding from 59.0 ft
Crests at major: 0; 13 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest: February 18, 2025; 51.01 ft, minor flooding
Location: Lawrence County; Near Huntington (3.6 mi), Ashland (8.5 mi), Ironton (12.7 mi)
Identifiers: NWS HNTW2; USGS 03206000

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Ohio River near Huntington

Action stage	48.0	11	Dec 24, 2018	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	50.0	12	Feb 18, 2025	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage	55.0	1	Mar 5, 1997	Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage	59.0	0	—	Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

24 crests from 1959 to 2025. 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.
19 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 61.80 ft on Jan 1, 1832; 61.10 ft on Jan 1, 1847; 60.50 ft on Jan 1, 1883; 64.80 ft on Feb 11, 1884; 59.40 ft on Jan 1, 1897; 58.20 ft on Mar 18, 1907; and more.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Ohio River near Huntington

1	Mar 5, 1997	57.52	+7.52	Moderate	—
2	Mar 13, 1964	54.79	+4.79	Minor	455,000
3	Feb 27, 1979	54.24	+4.24	Minor	454,000
4	Dec 11, 1978	54.00	+4.00	Minor	—
5	Mar 3, 2021	53.99	+3.99	Minor	—
6	Mar 13, 2011	52.25	+2.25	Minor	—
7	Jan 2, 1991	51.72	+1.72	Minor	—
8	Mar 7, 2015	51.46	+1.46	Minor	—
9	Sep 20, 2004	51.28	+1.28	Minor	—
10	Feb 18, 2025	51.01	+1.01	Minor	—
11	Feb 14, 2020	50.48	+0.48	Minor	—
12	Jul 31, 1994	50.38	+0.38	Minor	—
13	Jan 13, 1974	50.10	+0.10	Minor	460,000
14	Jan 24, 1959	49.67	−0.33	Action	444,000
15	Apr 6, 1977	49.64	−0.36	Action	391,000
16	Nov 30, 1985	49.59	−0.41	Action	388,000
17	Jan 28, 1978	49.54	−0.46	Action	406,000
18	Mar 14, 2015	49.47	−0.53	Action	—
19	Feb 16, 1966	48.78	−1.22	Action	416,000
20	Feb 25, 2003	48.77	−1.23	Action	—
21	Mar 6, 1993	48.67	−1.33	Action	—
22	Dec 24, 2018	48.54	−1.46	Action	—
23	Mar 1, 1961	48.26	−1.74	Action	334,000
24	May 28, 1968	48.26	−1.74	Action	388,000

The worst floods along the Ohio River

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

March 5, 1997: 57.52 ft here, moderate flooding

Lloyd Greenup LockKY · Mar 4, 1997 · 62.30 ft · Major
CairoIL · Mar 11, 1997 · 56.20 ft · Major
ShawneetownKY · Mar 12, 1997 · 54.40 ft · Major
Cannelton Lock and DamKY · Mar 8, 1997 · 52.42 ft · Major
Smithland Lock and DamKY · Mar 12, 1997 · 51.44 ft · Major
PomeroyOH · Mar 4, 1997 · 50.90 ft · Major
Tell CityIN · Mar 8, 1997 · 50.40 ft · Major
Point PleasantWV · Mar 4, 1997 · 50.04 ft · Major
OwensboroKY · Mar 9, 1997 · 49.00 ft · Major
McAlpine UpperKY · Mar 7, 1997 · 38.76 ft · Major

March 13, 1964: 54.79 ft here, minor flooding

McAlpine LowerKY · Mar 13, 1964 · 73.46 ft · Major
CincinnatiOH · Mar 11, 1964 · 66.20 ft · Major · its highest
ShawneetownKY · Mar 20, 1964 · 54.60 ft · Major
Cannelton Lock and DamKY · Mar 8, 1964 · 53.90 ft · Major
Tell CityIN · Mar 8, 1964 · 53.00 ft · Major
PomeroyOH · Mar 13, 1964 · 52.80 ft · Major
OwensboroKY · Mar 15, 1964 · 49.50 ft · Major
Point PleasantWV · Mar 13, 1964 · 48.87 ft · Major
Belleville LockWV · Mar 12, 1964 · 48.80 ft · Major
Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Mar 11, 1964 · 47.70 ft · Major · its highest

February 27, 1979: 54.24 ft here, minor flooding

PomeroyOH · Feb 27, 1979 · 51.40 ft · Major
Racine LockWV · Feb 27, 1979 · 48.20 ft · Major
Point PleasantWV · Feb 27, 1979 · 48.06 ft · Major
Lloyd Greenup LockKY · Feb 28, 1979 · 59.19 ft · Moderate
CincinnatiOH · Mar 1, 1979 · 58.60 ft · Moderate
R C Byrd LockWV · Feb 27, 1979 · 52.60 ft · Moderate
ParkersburgWV · Feb 27, 1979 · 40.05 ft · Moderate
PittsburghPA · Mar 6, 1979 · 25.71 ft · Moderate
Newburgh Lock and DamKY · Mar 5, 1979 · 47.20 ft · Minor
MoundsvilleWV · Feb 27, 1979 · 38.60 ft · Minor

Gauges on the Ohio River

Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.

Flood gauges on the Ohio River

Ashland	KY	52.0	74.21 ft, Jan 27, 1937	4
Belleville Lock	WV	35.0	61.80 ft, Mar 29, 1913	15
Cairo	IL	40.0	61.72 ft, May 2, 2011	19
Cannelton Lock and Dam	KY	42.0	60.80 ft, Jan 27, 1937	8
Cincinnati	OH	52.0	66.20 ft, Mar 11, 1964	1
Clifty Creek	IN	451.0	475.90 ft, Jan 27, 1937	1
Dashields Lock and Dam	PA	25.0	42.80 ft, Mar 18, 1936	5
East Liverpool	WV	14.0	29.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936	11
Evansville	IN	42.0	53.75 ft, Jan 31, 1937	1
Golconda	IL	40.0	62.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937	3
Hannibal Lock and Dam	OH	35.0	41.90 ft, Jun 25, 1972	2
Henderson	KY	36.0	43.08 ft, Apr 12, 2025	0
Ironton	OH	52.0	54.67 ft, Feb 19, 2018	0
J.T. Myers Lock and Dam	KY	37.0	64.40 ft, Feb 1, 1937	1
Lloyd Greenup Lock	KY	54.0	64.50 ft, Mar 31, 1913	3
Marietta Pumphouse	OH	35.0	58.30 ft, Mar 29, 1913	3
Markland Lower	KY	51.0	76.10 ft, Jan 26, 1937	1
Maysville	KY	50.0	75.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937	2
McAlpine Lower	KY	55.0	85.44 ft, Jan 27, 1937	4
McAlpine Upper	KY	23.0	52.15 ft, Jan 27, 1937	7
Meldahl Dam	OH	51.0	76.00 ft, Jan 26, 1937	3
Montgomery Lock and Dam	PA	33.0	55.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	10
Moundsville	WV	37.0	57.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936	3
Mount Vernon	IN	35.0	59.21 ft, Feb 1, 1937	2
New Cumberland Lock and Dam	OH	36.0	50.20 ft, Dec 31, 1942	15
Newburgh Lock and Dam	KY	38.0	56.60 ft, Jan 31, 1937	1
Olmsted Lock and Dam Headwater	KY	36.0	48.20 ft, Feb 21, 2020	1
Owensboro	KY	40.0	54.80 ft, Jan 29, 1937	5
Paducah	KY	39.0	60.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937	7
Parkersburg	WV	36.0	45.20 ft, Mar 12, 1964	5
Pike Island Lock and Dam	WV	37.0	47.70 ft, Mar 11, 1964	5
Pittsburgh	PA	22.0	46.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	22
Point Pleasant	WV	40.0	62.80 ft, Mar 30, 1913	25
Pomeroy	OH	46.0	68.80 ft, Apr 1, 1913	34
Portsmouth	OH	50.0	53.78 ft, Apr 7, 2025	0
Powhatan Point	OH	37.0	53.30 ft, Mar 19, 1936	5
R C Byrd Lock	WV	50.0	69.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937	9
Racine Lock	WV	41.0	50.23 ft, Sep 20, 2004	3
Shawneetown	KY	33.0	65.64 ft, Jan 30, 1937	7
Smithland Lock and Dam	KY	40.0	54.83 ft, May 6, 2011	4
Steubenville	OH	36.0	44.00 ft, Jan 20, 1996	1
Tell City	IN	38.0	56.95 ft, Jan 29, 1937	6
Wellsburg	WV	36.0	54.60 ft, Mar 19, 1936	9
Wellsville	OH	11.0	20.90 ft, Jan 20, 1996	3
Wheeling	WV	36.0	45.40 ft, Jan 20, 1996	3
Willow Island Lock	WV	37.0	44.78 ft, Sep 19, 2004	2
Huntington this gauge	OH	50.0	57.52 ft, Mar 5, 1997	0

Other gauges in Lawrence County

Flood gauges in Lawrence County

Ironton	52.0	54.67 ft, Feb 19, 2018	0
Aid	19.0	21.58 ft, Feb 4, 2022	0

Lawrence County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Ohio

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge HNTW2, 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.