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Arkansas River near Ponca City

Highest listed crest 22.26 ftFlood stage 17.0 ft17 crests since 1977

The Arkansas River near Ponca City crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 17 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1977 to 2019. The highest, 22.26 ft on May 24, 2019, was major flooding, 5.26 feet above flood stage. 14 other gauges on the Arkansas River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 2 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
22.26 ft
May 24, 2019; 105,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
17.0 ft
Major flooding from 21.0 ft
Crests at major
1
74th of 92 gauges in Oklahoma
Most recent flood crest
May 24, 2019
22.26 ft, major flooding
Location
Kay County
Near Ponca City (7.8 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Arkansas River near Ponca City
Action stage17.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)17.00—Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage19.01May 14, 1993Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage21.01May 24, 2019Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

17 crests from 1977 to 2019. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Arkansas River near Ponca City, 1977 to 2019 510152025ft Flood stage 17.0 ftMajor 21.0 ft Jun 27, 1977: 13.00 ft, below flood stage; 20,800 cubic feet per secondJul 28, 1981: 11.60 ft, below flood stage; 14,500 cubic feet per secondJun 30, 1982: 12.40 ft, below flood stage; 18,000 cubic feet per secondApr 8, 1983: 12.85 ft, below flood stage; 20,000 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1984: 13.40 ft, below flood stage; 22,500 cubic feet per secondSep 26, 1985: 11.80 ft, below flood stage; 15,300 cubic feet per secondOct 16, 1986: 13.30 ft, below flood stage; 22,000 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1988: 10.66 ft, below flood stage; 10,800 cubic feet per secondSep 7, 1989: 13.97 ft, below flood stage; 23,900 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1990: 13.09 ft, below flood stage; 21,100 cubic feet per secondOct 4, 1990: 8.93 ft, below flood stage; 5,620 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 1992: 10.20 ft, below flood stage; 9,150 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 1993: 20.11 ft, moderate flooding; 62,900 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 1994: 12.06 ft, below flood stage; 16,500 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 1995: 15.45 ft, below flood stage; 33,000 cubic feet per secondMay 13, 2019: 16.35 ft, below flood stage; 57,482 cubic feet per secondMay 24, 2019: 22.26 ft, major flooding; 105,000 cubic feet per second Highest, 22.26 ft, May 24, 2019 19801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Arkansas River near Ponca City 1970s: 0 1980s: 0 1990s: 1 1 2000s: 0 2010s: 1 1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s
  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, Arkansas River near Ponca City
1May 24, 201922.26+5.26Major105,000
2May 14, 199320.11+3.11Moderate62,900
3May 13, 201916.35−0.65Below flood stage57,482
4Jun 1, 199515.45−1.55Below flood stage33,000
5Sep 7, 198913.97−3.03Below flood stage23,900
6Mar 30, 198413.40−3.60Below flood stage22,500
7Oct 16, 198613.30−3.70Below flood stage22,000
8Apr 3, 199013.09−3.91Below flood stage21,100
9Jun 27, 197713.00−4.00Below flood stage20,800
10Apr 8, 198312.85−4.15Below flood stage20,000
11Jun 30, 198212.40−4.60Below flood stage18,000
12May 3, 199412.06−4.94Below flood stage16,500
13Sep 26, 198511.80−5.20Below flood stage15,300
14Jul 28, 198111.60−5.40Below flood stage14,500
15Apr 6, 198810.66−6.34Below flood stage10,800
16Jun 19, 199210.20−6.80Below flood stage9,150
17Oct 4, 19908.93−8.07Below flood stage5,620

The worst floods along the Arkansas River

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

May 24, 2019: 22.26 ft here, major flooding

  • Ozark L/D TailwaterAR · May 30, 2019 · 374.99 ft · Major · its highest
  • MuskogeeOK · May 26, 2019 · 46.39 ft · Major
  • DardanelleAR · May 30, 2019 · 45.91 ft · Major · its highest
  • Van BurenAR · May 28, 2019 · 40.26 ft · Major
  • HaskellOK · May 29, 2019 · 24.24 ft · Major
  • TulsaOK · May 29, 2019 · 23.51 ft · Major
  • RalstonOK · May 23, 2019 · 22.14 ft · Major
  • HavenKS · May 22, 2019 · 12.81 ft · Major
  • OxfordKS · May 23, 2019 · 21.53 ft · Moderate
  • Arkansas CityKS · May 28, 2019 · 20.48 ft · Moderate

May 14, 1993: 20.11 ft here, moderate flooding

Gauges on the Arkansas River

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

Flood gauges on the Arkansas River
Arkansas CityKS11.020.91 ft, May 9, 20190
DardanelleAR32.045.91 ft, May 30, 20195
DerbyKS12.016.60 ft, Nov 2, 19981
Great BendKS12.017.70 ft, Jun 15, 19810
HutchinsonKS8.013.85 ft, Apr 2, 19730
Little RockAR23.034.60 ft, Jun 17, 183329
MorriltonAR30.043.03 ft, Jun 4, 201910
OxfordKS17.026.85 ft, Nov 2, 19982
Ozark L/D TailwaterAR357.0374.99 ft, May 30, 20197
PendletonAR31.037.63 ft, Jun 6, 20194
Pine BluffAR42.052.10 ft, May 28, 19436
RalstonOK16.023.00 ft, Jun 11, 192310
Toad Suck Lock and DamAR275.0285.40 ft, Jun 4, 20195
TulsaOK18.025.21 ft, Oct 5, 19864
Van BurenAR22.040.79 ft, Jun 1, 201918
HaskellOK19.026.02 ft, Jan 1, 19802
HavenKS10.013.08 ft, May 8, 20079
Kinsley 2EKS12.017.60 ft, Jun 21, 19651
MulvaneKS16.520.90 ft, Nov 2, 19980
MuskogeeOK28.048.20 ft, May 21, 194311
Ponca City this gaugeOK17.022.26 ft, May 24, 20191

Other gauges in Kay County

Flood gauges in Kay County
Blackwell29.035.36 ft, Sep 14, 200828
Tonkawa17.028.98 ft, Oct 11, 19739

Kay County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Oklahoma

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge PCYO2, 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.