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Pawcatuck at Westerly

Highest listed crest 15.00 ftFlood stage 7.0 ft76 crests since 1938

The Pawcatuck at Westerly crested at major flood stage 2 times among the 76 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1938 to 2024. The highest, 15.00 ft on September 21, 1938, was major flooding, 8.00 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
15.00 ft
September 21, 1938
Flood stage
7.0 ft
Major flooding from 11.0 ft
Crests at major
2
5th of 16 gauges in Rhode Island
Most recent flood crest
December 12, 2024
7.40 ft, minor flooding
Location
Washington County
Near Groton (12.8 mi), New London (14.1 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Pawcatuck at Westerly
Action stage6.06Mar 31, 2003The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)7.055Dec 12, 2024Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage9.013Mar 11, 2024Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage11.02Jun 6, 1982Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

76 crests from 1938 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Pawcatuck at Westerly, 1938 to 2024 6810121416ft Flood stage 7.0 ftMajor 11.0 ft Sep 21, 1938: 15.00 ft, major floodingMar 23, 1942: 6.95 ft, action stage; 2,080 cubic feet per secondDec 31, 1942: 7.16 ft, minor flooding; 2,240 cubic feet per secondDec 1, 1944: 7.12 ft, minor flooding; 2,180 cubic feet per secondAug 8, 1946: 7.38 ft, minor flooding; 1,930 cubic feet per secondMar 20, 1948: 7.35 ft, minor flooding; 2,560 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 1951: 6.82 ft, action stage; 1,930 cubic feet per secondMar 16, 1953: 8.83 ft, minor flooding; 3,510 cubic feet per secondSep 12, 1954: 8.92 ft, minor flooding; 3,340 cubic feet per secondDec 20, 1954: 6.94 ft, action stage; 2,060 cubic feet per secondOct 17, 1955: 8.22 ft, minor flooding; 2,800 cubic feet per secondApr 7, 1958: 7.74 ft, minor flooding; 2,420 cubic feet per secondMar 7, 1959: 6.89 ft, action stage; 2,030 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1960: 7.03 ft, minor flooding; 2,010 cubic feet per secondSep 22, 1961: 8.04 ft, minor flooding; 2,670 cubic feet per secondMar 7, 1963: 6.97 ft, action stage; 2,060 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1964: 7.97 ft, minor flooding; 2,710 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 1967: 7.32 ft, minor flooding; 2,120 cubic feet per secondMar 18, 1968: 10.49 ft, moderate flooding; 4,470 cubic feet per secondMar 26, 1969: 7.31 ft, minor flooding; 2,260 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1970: 8.64 ft, minor flooding; 3,150 cubic feet per secondJun 20, 1972: 8.66 ft, minor flooding; 3,280 cubic feet per secondDec 9, 1972: 7.38 ft, minor flooding; 2,470 cubic feet per secondJan 29, 1976: 7.57 ft, minor flooding; 2,670 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 1977: 7.20 ft, minor flooding; 2,410 cubic feet per secondJan 26, 1978: 9.52 ft, moderate flooding; 4,110 cubic feet per secondJan 25, 1979: 9.51 ft, moderate flooding; 4,010 cubic feet per secondMar 22, 1980: 9.77 ft, moderate flooding; 4,190 cubic feet per secondJun 6, 1982: 12.86 ft, major flooding; 7,070 cubic feet per secondApr 25, 1983: 9.78 ft, moderate flooding; 4,340 cubic feet per secondJun 3, 1984: 9.05 ft, moderate flooding; 3,770 cubic feet per secondAug 31, 1985: 8.44 ft, minor flooding; 3,330 cubic feet per secondDec 3, 1986: 8.64 ft, minor flooding; 3,450 cubic feet per secondDec 14, 1992: 7.24 ft, minor flooding; 2,420 cubic feet per secondMar 11, 1994: 8.65 ft, minor flooding; 3,460 cubic feet per secondDec 9, 1996: 7.30 ft, minor flooding; 2,010 cubic feet per secondMar 10, 1998: 7.93 ft, minor flooding; 2,890 cubic feet per secondFeb 4, 1999: 7.50 ft, minor flooding; 2,590 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 2001: 8.54 ft, minor flooding; 3,380 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 2003: 6.94 ft, action stage; 2,110 cubic feet per secondApr 15, 2004: 8.18 ft, minor flooding; 3,110 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 2005: 7.75 ft, minor flooding; 2,790 cubic feet per secondOct 15, 2005: 9.62 ft, moderate flooding; 4,220 cubic feet per secondMar 3, 2007: 8.91 ft, minor flooding; 3,660 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 2008: 7.54 ft, minor flooding; 2,630 cubic feet per secondFeb 26, 2010: 9.12 ft, moderate flooding; 3,790 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 2010: 9.28 ft, moderate flooding; 3,950 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 2010: 9.35 ft, moderate flooding; 4,000 cubic feet per secondDec 9, 2011: 7.54 ft, minor floodingOct 29, 2012: 8.54 ft, minor floodingJun 12, 2013: 8.08 ft, minor floodingMar 31, 2014: 9.21 ft, moderate flooding; 3,890 cubic feet per secondMay 2, 2014: 7.48 ft, minor floodingFeb 9, 2016: 7.16 ft, minor flooding; 2,291 cubic feet per secondApr 5, 2017: 7.73 ft, minor flooding; 2,774 cubic feet per secondJan 14, 2018: 7.36 ft, minor flooding; 2,380 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 2018: 8.22 ft, minor flooding; 3,142 cubic feet per secondNov 16, 2018: 7.68 ft, minor flooding; 2,679 cubic feet per secondNov 27, 2018: 7.30 ft, minor flooding; 2,327 cubic feet per secondJan 25, 2019: 7.63 ft, minor flooding; 2,633 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 2019: 7.02 ft, minor flooding; 2,056 cubic feet per secondDec 15, 2019: 7.81 ft, minor flooding; 2,798 cubic feet per secondDec 26, 2020: 7.00 ft, minor flooding; 2,046 cubic feet per secondSep 2, 2021: 7.74 ft, minor flooding; 2,735 cubic feet per secondJan 17, 2022: 7.21 ft, minor flooding; 2,200 cubic feet per secondFeb 23, 2022: 7.91 ft, minor flooding; 2,800 cubic feet per secondJan 26, 2023: 7.49 ft, minor flooding; 2,500 cubic feet per secondDec 19, 2023: 8.42 ft, minor flooding; 3,291 cubic feet per secondJan 13, 2024: 9.84 ft, moderate flooding; 4,392 cubic feet per secondMar 3, 2024: 7.34 ft, minor flooding; 2,364 cubic feet per secondMar 11, 2024: 9.13 ft, moderate flooding; 3,831 cubic feet per secondMar 26, 2024: 7.58 ft, minor flooding; 2,587 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 2024: 7.47 ft, minor flooding; 2,485 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 2024: 7.68 ft, minor flooding; 2,600 cubic feet per secondMay 18, 2024: 7.28 ft, minor flooding; 2,300 cubic feet per secondDec 12, 2024: 7.40 ft, minor flooding; 2,475 cubic feet per second Highest, 15.00 ft, Sep 21, 1938 19401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Pawcatuck at Westerly 1930s: 1 1940s: 4 1950s: 4 1960s: 6 1970s: 7 1980s: 6 1990s: 5 2000s: 6 2010s: 17 17 2020s: 14 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 76 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Pawcatuck at Westerly
1Sep 21, 193815.00+8.00Major—
2Jun 6, 198212.86+5.86Major7,070
3Mar 18, 196810.49+3.49Moderate4,470
4Jan 13, 20249.84+2.84Moderate4,392
5Apr 25, 19839.78+2.78Moderate4,340
6Mar 22, 19809.77+2.77Moderate4,190
7Oct 15, 20059.62+2.62Moderate4,220
8Jan 26, 19789.52+2.52Moderate4,110
9Jan 25, 19799.51+2.51Moderate4,010
10Mar 24, 20109.35+2.35Moderate4,000
11Mar 15, 20109.28+2.28Moderate3,950
12Mar 31, 20149.21+2.21Moderate3,890
13Mar 11, 20249.13+2.13Moderate3,831
14Feb 26, 20109.12+2.12Moderate3,790
15Jun 3, 19849.05+2.05Moderate3,770
16Sep 12, 19548.92+1.92Minor3,340
17Mar 3, 20078.91+1.91Minor3,660
18Mar 16, 19538.83+1.83Minor3,510
19Jun 20, 19728.66+1.66Minor3,280
20Mar 11, 19948.65+1.65Minor3,460
21Apr 3, 19708.64+1.64Minor3,150
22Dec 3, 19868.64+1.64Minor3,450
23Mar 31, 20018.54+1.54Minor3,380
24Oct 29, 20128.54+1.54Minor—
25Aug 31, 19858.44+1.44Minor3,330
26Dec 19, 20238.42+1.42Minor3,291
27Oct 17, 19558.22+1.22Minor2,800
28Mar 4, 20188.22+1.22Minor3,142
29Apr 15, 20048.18+1.18Minor3,110
30Jun 12, 20138.08+1.08Minor—
31Sep 22, 19618.04+1.04Minor2,670
32Apr 16, 19647.97+0.97Minor2,710
33Mar 10, 19987.93+0.93Minor2,890
34Feb 23, 20227.91+0.91Minor2,800
35Dec 15, 20197.81+0.81Minor2,798
36Apr 3, 20057.75+0.75Minor2,790
37Apr 7, 19587.74+0.74Minor2,420
38Sep 2, 20217.74+0.74Minor2,735
39Apr 5, 20177.73+0.73Minor2,774
40Nov 16, 20187.68+0.68Minor2,679
41Apr 4, 20247.68+0.68Minor2,600
42Jan 25, 20197.63+0.63Minor2,633
43Mar 26, 20247.58+0.58Minor2,587
44Jan 29, 19767.57+0.57Minor2,670
45Mar 9, 20087.54+0.54Minor2,630
46Dec 9, 20117.54+0.54Minor—
47Feb 4, 19997.50+0.50Minor2,590
48Jan 26, 20237.49+0.49Minor2,500
49May 2, 20147.48+0.48Minor—
50Mar 30, 20247.47+0.47Minor2,485

The worst floods along the Pawcatuck

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

June 6, 1982: 12.86 ft here, major flooding

March 18, 1968: 10.49 ft here, moderate flooding

January 13, 2024: 9.84 ft here, moderate flooding

Gauges on the Pawcatuck

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

Flood gauges on the Pawcatuck
Wood River JunctionRI5.011.16 ft, Mar 31, 20102
Westerly this gaugeRI7.015.00 ft, Sep 21, 19382

Other gauges in Washington County

Flood gauges in Washington County
Atlantic Coast at Watch Hill Cove (IN MLLW)5.07.35 ft, Oct 14, 20210
Narragansett Bay at Quonset Point (IN MLLW)6.015.58 ft, Dec 18, 20232
Wood River Junction5.011.16 ft, Mar 31, 20102
Hope Valley5.013.72 ft, Mar 30, 20103

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge WSTR1, 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.