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James River near Columbia

Highest listed crest 19.81 ftFlood stage 13.0 ft40 crests since 1982

The James River near Columbia crested at major flood stage 8 times among the 40 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1982 to 2025. The highest, 19.81 ft on July 16, 2011, was major flooding, 6.81 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the James River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 1 at its own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
19.81 ft
July 16, 2011; 6,200 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
13.0 ft
Major flooding from 18.0 ft
Crests at major
8
9th of 155 gauges in South Dakota
Most recent flood crest
September 4, 2025
14.33 ft, minor flooding
Location
Brown County
Near Aberdeen (12.3 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, James River near Columbia
Action stage12.03Mar 21, 2017The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)13.012Sep 4, 2025Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage16.05Apr 23, 2001Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage18.08May 14, 2023Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

40 crests from 1982 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the James River near Columbia, 1982 to 2025 05101520ft Flood stage 13.0 ftMajor 18.0 ft Apr 18, 1982: 16.30 ft, moderate flooding; 960 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1983: 14.12 ft, minor flooding; 853 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1984: 14.75 ft, minor flooding; 1,100 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1985: 7.11 ft, below flood stage; 179 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 1986: 15.08 ft, minor flooding; 960 cubic feet per secondApr 11, 1987: 15.58 ft, minor flooding; 1,260 cubic feet per secondNov 21, 1987: 7.74 ft, below flood stage; 257 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 1989: 13.38 ft, minor flooding; 866 cubic feet per secondMar 17, 1990: 4.99 ft, below flood stage; 5 cubic feet per secondJun 30, 1991: 8.43 ft, below flood stage; 120 cubic feet per secondAug 19, 1993: 15.27 ft, minor flooding; 1,160 cubic feet per secondApr 26, 1994: 15.57 ft, minor flooding; 1,350 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 1995: 16.95 ft, moderate flooding; 1,660 cubic feet per secondApr 30, 1996: 16.89 ft, moderate flooding; 2,050 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 1997: 19.08 ft, major flooding; 4,869 cubic feet per secondApr 15, 1998: 14.41 ft, minor flooding; 1,240 cubic feet per secondMay 31, 1999: 17.10 ft, moderate flooding; 1,910 cubic feet per secondMar 20, 2000: 10.97 ft, below flood stage; 730 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 2001: 17.83 ft, moderate flooding; 2,170 cubic feet per secondOct 10, 2001: 7.80 ft, below flood stage; 271 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 2003: 10.45 ft, below flood stage; 581 cubic feet per secondJun 5, 2004: 12.32 ft, action stage; 980 cubic feet per secondApr 24, 2006: 9.90 ft, below flood stage; 383 cubic feet per secondAug 15, 2008: 7.37 ft, below flood stage; 231 cubic feet per secondApr 24, 2009: 19.73 ft, major flooding; 9,620 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 2010: 19.05 ft, major flooding; 4,750 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 2011: 19.81 ft, major flooding; 6,200 cubic feet per secondMay 11, 2012: 9.86 ft, below flood stage; 481 cubic feet per secondJul 10, 2013: 15.39 ft, minor flooding; 1,540 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 2014: 12.62 ft, action stage; 1,060 cubic feet per secondJun 17, 2015: 13.97 ft, minor flooding; 869 cubic feet per secondSep 23, 2016: 8.04 ft, below flood stage; 304 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 2017: 12.90 ft, action stage; 905 cubic feet per secondApr 24, 2018: 15.22 ft, minor flooding; 6,200 cubic feet per secondApr 21, 2019: 18.96 ft, major flooding; 5,120 cubic feet per secondNov 12, 2019: 18.75 ft, major flooding; 3,900 cubic feet per secondMar 8, 2021: 8.06 ft, below flood stage; 235 cubic feet per secondMay 31, 2022: 18.57 ft, major flooding; 4,200 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 2023: 18.03 ft, major flooding; 2,690 cubic feet per secondSep 4, 2025: 14.33 ft, minor flooding; 1,370 cubic feet per second Highest, 19.81 ft, Jul 16, 2011 1990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, James River near Columbia 1980s: 6 1990s: 7 7 2000s: 2 2010s: 7 2020s: 3 1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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, James River near Columbia
1Jul 16, 201119.81+6.81Major6,200
2Apr 24, 200919.73+6.73Major9,620
3Apr 18, 199719.08+6.08Major4,869
4Apr 2, 201019.05+6.05Major4,750
5Apr 21, 201918.96+5.96Major5,120
6Nov 12, 201918.75+5.75Major3,900
7May 31, 202218.57+5.57Major4,200
8May 14, 202318.03+5.03Major2,690
9Apr 23, 200117.83+4.83Moderate2,170
10May 31, 199917.10+4.10Moderate1,910
11May 22, 199516.95+3.95Moderate1,660
12Apr 30, 199616.89+3.89Moderate2,050
13Apr 18, 198216.30+3.30Moderate960
14Apr 11, 198715.58+2.58Minor1,260
15Apr 26, 199415.57+2.57Minor1,350
16Jul 10, 201315.39+2.39Minor1,540
17Aug 19, 199315.27+2.27Minor1,160
18Apr 24, 201815.22+2.22Minor6,200
19May 19, 198615.08+2.08Minor960
20Apr 16, 198414.75+1.75Minor1,100
21Apr 15, 199814.41+1.41Minor1,240
22Sep 4, 202514.33+1.33Minor1,370
23Apr 6, 198314.12+1.12Minor853
24Jun 17, 201513.97+0.97Minor869
25Apr 18, 198913.38+0.38Minor866
26Mar 21, 201712.90−0.10Action905
27Jun 21, 201412.62−0.38Action1,060
28Jun 5, 200412.32−0.68Action980
29Mar 20, 200010.97−2.03Below flood stage730
30Jun 28, 200310.45−2.55Below flood stage581
31Apr 24, 20069.90−3.10Below flood stage383
32May 11, 20129.86−3.14Below flood stage481
33Jun 30, 19918.43−4.57Below flood stage120
34Mar 8, 20218.06−4.94Below flood stage235
35Sep 23, 20168.04−4.96Below flood stage304
36Oct 10, 20017.80−5.20Below flood stage271
37Nov 21, 19877.74−5.26Below flood stage257
38Aug 15, 20087.37−5.63Below flood stage231
39Apr 6, 19857.11−5.89Below flood stage179
40Mar 17, 19904.99−8.01Below flood stage5

The worst floods along the James River

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

July 16, 2011: 19.81 ft here, major flooding

  • StratfordSD · Jul 19, 2011 · 21.57 ft · Major · its highest

April 24, 2009: 19.73 ft here, major flooding

  • HeclaND · Apr 18, 2009 · 96.35 ft · Major
  • RedfieldSD · Apr 30, 2009 · 25.79 ft · Major
  • AshtonSD · Apr 30, 2009 · 22.96 ft · Major
  • StratfordSD · Apr 26, 2009 · 19.98 ft · Major
  • Grace CityND · Apr 17, 2009 · 17.74 ft · Major · its highest
  • KensalND · Apr 28, 2009 · 16.69 ft · Major · its highest

April 18, 1997: 19.08 ft here, major flooding

  • JamestownND · Apr 18, 1997 · 12.04 ft · Minor

Gauges on the James River

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

Flood gauges on the James River
Grace CityND12.017.74 ft, Apr 17, 20093
KensalND9.016.69 ft, Apr 28, 20095
JamestownND12.016.94 ft, Apr 11, 19691
LaMoureND14.017.56 ft, Apr 15, 20090
HeclaND93.098.04 ft, Apr 1, 19972
Columbia this gaugeSD13.019.81 ft, Jul 16, 20118
StratfordSD14.021.57 ft, Jul 19, 20116
AshtonSD13.026.64 ft, Apr 6, 199716
RedfieldSD20.031.10 ft, Apr 6, 19976
HuronSD11.521.28 ft, Apr 6, 19973
ForestburgSD12.020.61 ft, Apr 6, 19977
MitchellSD17.025.33 ft, Apr 11, 20015
ScotlandSD13.022.22 ft, Sep 13, 201916
YanktonSD12.027.84 ft, Sep 14, 20199

Other gauges in Brown County

Flood gauges in Brown County
Ordway13.015.88 ft, Apr 5, 20190
Frederick13.019.56 ft, Jul 25, 20200
Westport14.022.63 ft, Mar 25, 20097
Aberdeen9.010.38 ft, Mar 16, 20100
Aberdeen6.08.00 ft, May 6, 20070

Brown County: every hazard · River floods across the country · South Dakota

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CMBS2, 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.