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Narragansett Bay at Newport Harbor (IN MLLW)

Highest listed crest 13.30 ftFlood stage 6.0 ft82 crests since 1933

The Narragansett Bay at Newport Harbor (IN MLLW) crested at major flood stage 2 times among the 82 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1933 to 2024. The highest, 13.30 ft on September 20, 1938, was major flooding, 7.30 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
13.30 ft
September 20, 1938
Flood stage
6.0 ft
Major flooding from 9.0 ft
Crests at major
2
5th of 16 gauges in Rhode Island
Most recent flood crest
March 10, 2024
6.44 ft, minor flooding
Location
Newport County
Near Newport (1.9 mi), Warwick (14.6 mi)
Identifiers
NWS NWPR1
No USGS station

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Narragansett Bay at Newport Harbor (IN MLLW)
Action stage5.530Jan 31, 2006The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)6.045Mar 10, 2024Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage7.54Jan 31, 2024Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage9.02Aug 30, 1954Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

82 crests from 1933 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Narragansett Bay at Newport Harbor (IN MLLW), 1933 to 2024 468101214ft Flood stage 6.0 ftMajor 9.0 ft Jan 26, 1933: 5.80 ft, action stageSep 30, 1936: 5.50 ft, action stageSep 20, 1938: 13.30 ft, major floodingMar 2, 1942: 6.00 ft, minor floodingDec 1, 1942: 5.60 ft, action stageSep 13, 1944: 7.80 ft, moderate floodingNov 29, 1944: 6.70 ft, minor floodingDec 11, 1944: 5.40 ft, below flood stageMar 2, 1947: 6.20 ft, minor floodingOct 30, 1947: 5.60 ft, action stageNov 11, 1947: 6.00 ft, minor floodingOct 21, 1949: 5.60 ft, action stageNov 24, 1950: 5.50 ft, action stageFeb 6, 1951: 5.90 ft, action stageNov 2, 1951: 5.80 ft, action stageFeb 14, 1953: 5.70 ft, action stageApr 12, 1953: 5.50 ft, action stageOct 22, 1953: 5.60 ft, action stageNov 6, 1953: 6.40 ft, minor floodingAug 30, 1954: 10.60 ft, major floodingOct 15, 1955: 5.60 ft, action stageApr 2, 1958: 5.90 ft, action stageDec 28, 1959: 5.90 ft, action stageFeb 18, 1960: 6.00 ft, minor floodingSep 11, 1960: 6.50 ft, minor floodingJan 15, 1961: 5.80 ft, action stageSep 20, 1961: 5.70 ft, action stageOct 22, 1961: 5.70 ft, action stageMar 6, 1962: 6.30 ft, minor floodingNov 29, 1963: 7.10 ft, minor floodingDec 28, 1966: 6.11 ft, minor floodingNov 11, 1968: 5.70 ft, action stageDec 16, 1970: 5.80 ft, action stageMar 27, 1971: 5.74 ft, action stageFeb 18, 1972: 6.66 ft, minor floodingNov 19, 1972: 6.56 ft, minor floodingDec 20, 1972: 5.91 ft, action stageNov 12, 1974: 5.92 ft, action stageDec 1, 1974: 7.10 ft, minor floodingFeb 1, 1976: 6.37 ft, minor floodingJan 8, 1978: 7.45 ft, minor floodingFeb 5, 1978: 7.11 ft, minor floodingJan 24, 1979: 6.24 ft, minor floodingJan 28, 1979: 6.01 ft, minor floodingOct 25, 1980: 5.77 ft, action stageNov 25, 1983: 5.94 ft, action stageDec 12, 1985: 5.78 ft, action stageDec 3, 1986: 6.30 ft, minor floodingJan 2, 1987: 5.98 ft, action stageJan 22, 1987: 6.73 ft, minor floodingDec 4, 1990: 6.27 ft, minor floodingAug 19, 1991: 7.83 ft, moderate floodingOct 30, 1991: 7.12 ft, minor floodingJan 23, 1992: 6.02 ft, minor floodingDec 12, 1992: 6.31 ft, minor floodingJan 19, 1996: 6.11 ft, minor floodingJan 10, 1997: 7.08 ft, minor floodingNov 2, 1997: 5.96 ft, action stageJan 29, 1998: 5.89 ft, action stageDec 12, 2000: 6.23 ft, minor floodingMar 7, 2001: 6.05 ft, minor floodingNov 6, 2002: 6.30 ft, minor floodingOct 29, 2003: 5.87 ft, action stageJan 31, 2006: 5.88 ft, action stageOct 28, 2006: 6.34 ft, minor floodingApr 16, 2007: 6.76 ft, minor floodingDec 12, 2008: 6.52 ft, minor floodingDec 3, 2009: 6.21 ft, minor floodingMar 2, 2010: 6.07 ft, minor floodingMar 31, 2010: 6.06 ft, minor floodingAug 28, 2011: 6.46 ft, minor floodingJun 5, 2012: 6.24 ft, minor floodingOct 29, 2012: 8.07 ft, moderate floodingDec 27, 2012: 6.28 ft, minor floodingFeb 9, 2016: 6.42 ft, minor floodingJan 4, 2018: 6.32 ft, minor floodingJan 30, 2018: 6.05 ft, minor floodingDec 23, 2022: 7.25 ft, minor floodingDec 18, 2023: 6.88 ft, minor floodingJan 13, 2024: 7.19 ft, minor floodingJan 31, 2024: 8.11 ft, moderate floodingMar 10, 2024: 6.44 ft, minor flooding Highest, 13.30 ft, Sep 20, 1938 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Narragansett Bay at Newport Harbor (IN MLLW) 1930s: 1 1940s: 5 1950s: 2 1960s: 5 1970s: 8 1980s: 2 1990s: 7 2000s: 7 2010s: 9 9 2020s: 5 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 82 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Narragansett Bay at Newport Harbor (IN MLLW)
1Sep 20, 193813.30+7.30Major—
2Aug 30, 195410.60+4.60Major—
3Jan 31, 20248.11+2.11Moderate—
4Oct 29, 20128.07+2.07Moderate—
5Aug 19, 19917.83+1.83Moderate—
6Sep 13, 19447.80+1.80Moderate—
7Jan 8, 19787.45+1.45Minor—
8Dec 23, 20227.25+1.25Minor—
9Jan 13, 20247.19+1.19Minor—
10Oct 30, 19917.12+1.12Minor—
11Feb 5, 19787.11+1.11Minor—
12Nov 29, 19637.10+1.10Minor—
13Dec 1, 19747.10+1.10Minor—
14Jan 10, 19977.08+1.08Minor—
15Dec 18, 20236.88+0.88Minor—
16Apr 16, 20076.76+0.76Minor—
17Jan 22, 19876.73+0.73Minor—
18Nov 29, 19446.70+0.70Minor—
19Feb 18, 19726.66+0.66Minor—
20Nov 19, 19726.56+0.56Minor—
21Dec 12, 20086.52+0.52Minor—
22Sep 11, 19606.50+0.50Minor—
23Aug 28, 20116.46+0.46Minor—
24Mar 10, 20246.44+0.44Minor—
25Feb 9, 20166.42+0.42Minor—
26Nov 6, 19536.40+0.40Minor—
27Feb 1, 19766.37+0.37Minor—
28Oct 28, 20066.34+0.34Minor—
29Jan 4, 20186.32+0.32Minor—
30Dec 12, 19926.31+0.31Minor—
31Mar 6, 19626.30+0.30Minor—
32Dec 3, 19866.30+0.30Minor—
33Nov 6, 20026.30+0.30Minor—
34Dec 27, 20126.28+0.28Minor—
35Dec 4, 19906.27+0.27Minor—
36Jan 24, 19796.24+0.24Minor—
37Jun 5, 20126.24+0.24Minor—
38Dec 12, 20006.23+0.23Minor—
39Dec 3, 20096.21+0.21Minor—
40Mar 2, 19476.20+0.20Minor—
41Dec 28, 19666.11+0.11Minor—
42Jan 19, 19966.11+0.11Minor—
43Mar 2, 20106.07+0.07Minor—
44Mar 31, 20106.06+0.06Minor—
45Mar 7, 20016.05+0.05Minor—
46Jan 30, 20186.05+0.05Minor—
47Jan 23, 19926.02+0.02Minor—
48Jan 28, 19796.01+0.01Minor—
49Mar 2, 19426.000.00Minor—
50Nov 11, 19476.000.00Minor—

Newport County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Rhode Island

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge NWPR1, 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.