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Little White River below White River

Highest listed crest 13.76 ftFlood stage 13.0 ft66 crests since 1969

The Little White River below White River crested above flood stage 2 times among the 66 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1969 to 2024. The highest, 13.76 ft on June 3, 1997, was minor flooding, 0.76 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Little White River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
13.76 ft
June 3, 1997; 11,200 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
13.0 ft
Major flooding from 18.0 ft
Crests at major
0
2 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
June 3, 1997
13.76 ft, minor flooding
Location
Mellette County
South Dakota

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Little White River below White River
Action stage11.01Jun 21, 2011The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)13.02Jun 3, 1997Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage15.00—Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage18.00—Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

66 crests from 1969 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Little White River below White River, 1969 to 2024 05101520ft Flood stage 13.0 ftMajor 18.0 ft Jul 20, 1969: 5.43 ft, below flood stage; 1,400 cubic feet per secondNov 14, 1969: 4.41 ft, below flood stage; 804 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 1971: 13.75 ft, minor flooding; 11,200 cubic feet per secondJul 26, 1972: 5.41 ft, below flood stage; 1,500 cubic feet per secondMay 28, 1973: 4.57 ft, below flood stage; 995 cubic feet per secondOct 11, 1973: 4.38 ft, below flood stage; 846 cubic feet per secondMay 18, 1975: 4.72 ft, below flood stage; 905 cubic feet per secondJul 28, 1976: 4.59 ft, below flood stage; 942 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 1977: 5.42 ft, below flood stage; 1,460 cubic feet per secondMar 19, 1978: 9.15 ft, below flood stage; 5,500 cubic feet per secondJun 18, 1979: 7.15 ft, below flood stage; 3,320 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 1980: 5.90 ft, below flood stage; 1,970 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1981: 3.76 ft, below flood stage; 210 cubic feet per secondJun 14, 1982: 6.21 ft, below flood stage; 2,410 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 1983: 10.40 ft, below flood stage; 7,000 cubic feet per secondJul 3, 1984: 4.06 ft, below flood stage; 800 cubic feet per secondMar 19, 1985: 3.72 ft, below flood stage; 629 cubic feet per secondJun 11, 1986: 5.03 ft, below flood stage; 1,520 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1987: 4.67 ft, below flood stage; 1,370 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 1988: 4.31 ft, below flood stage; 991 cubic feet per secondSep 21, 1989: 3.70 ft, below flood stage; 550 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 1990: 5.80 ft, below flood stage; 2,090 cubic feet per secondJun 4, 1991: 6.17 ft, below flood stage; 2,410 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 1992: 4.31 ft, below flood stage; 826 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 1993: 5.24 ft, below flood stage; 1,650 cubic feet per secondMar 3, 1994: 6.82 ft, below flood stage; 3,220 cubic feet per secondMay 28, 1995: 7.46 ft, below flood stage; 3,600 cubic feet per secondMay 27, 1996: 10.14 ft, below flood stage; 7,980 cubic feet per secondJun 3, 1997: 13.76 ft, minor flooding; 11,200 cubic feet per secondJul 3, 1998: 6.46 ft, below flood stage; 3,140 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 1999: 5.05 ft, below flood stage; 1,870 cubic feet per secondDec 26, 1999: 4.18 ft, below flood stage; 800 cubic feet per secondMar 13, 2001: 7.83 ft, below flood stage; 4,000 cubic feet per secondMar 13, 2002: 5.15 ft, below flood stage; 900 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 2003: 5.47 ft, below flood stage; 600 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 2004: 2.94 ft, below flood stage; 566 cubic feet per secondApr 22, 2005: 5.43 ft, below flood stage; 2,270 cubic feet per secondMay 20, 2006: 2.79 ft, below flood stage; 490 cubic feet per secondMay 5, 2007: 3.12 ft, below flood stage; 642 cubic feet per secondJun 5, 2008: 6.91 ft, below flood stage; 3,530 cubic feet per secondFeb 10, 2009: 9.23 ft, below flood stage; 4,000 cubic feet per secondApr 24, 2010: 5.59 ft, below flood stage; 2,400 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 2011: 12.61 ft, action stage; 9,710 cubic feet per secondJan 30, 2012: 4.43 ft, below flood stageMay 4, 2012: 4.36 ft, below flood stage; 1,110 cubic feet per secondJul 31, 2013: 3.74 ft, below flood stage; 1,090 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 2014: 5.37 ft, below flood stageAug 28, 2014: 4.49 ft, below flood stage; 1,610 cubic feet per secondFeb 25, 2015: 7.61 ft, below flood stageMay 17, 2015: 4.38 ft, below flood stage; 1,530 cubic feet per secondFeb 19, 2016: 3.97 ft, below flood stageApr 17, 2016: 3.41 ft, below flood stage; 947 cubic feet per secondFeb 20, 2017: 6.33 ft, below flood stageMay 18, 2017: 5.29 ft, below flood stage; 2,150 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 2018: 5.61 ft, below flood stageJun 21, 2018: 3.03 ft, below flood stage; 780 cubic feet per secondMar 23, 2019: 10.24 ft, below flood stage; 6,720 cubic feet per secondFeb 19, 2020: 8.42 ft, below flood stageMar 8, 2020: 2.56 ft, below flood stage; 602 cubic feet per secondJan 31, 2021: 6.59 ft, below flood stageMar 19, 2021: 2.23 ft, below flood stage; 442 cubic feet per secondMar 1, 2022: 6.58 ft, below flood stageJun 12, 2022: 3.43 ft, below flood stage; 644 cubic feet per secondMar 1, 2023: 6.47 ft, below flood stageMay 14, 2023: 3.92 ft, below flood stage; 950 cubic feet per secondApr 27, 2024: 5.51 ft, below flood stage; 1,860 cubic feet per second Highest, 13.76 ft, Jun 3, 1997 197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Little White River below White River 1960s: 0 1970s: 1 1 1980s: 0 1990s: 1 2000s: 0 2010s: 0 2020s: 0 1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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 66 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Little White River below White River
1Jun 3, 199713.76+0.76Minor11,200
2Apr 20, 197113.75+0.75Minor11,200
3Jun 21, 201112.61−0.39Action9,710
4May 1, 198310.40−2.60Below flood stage7,000
5Mar 23, 201910.24−2.76Below flood stage6,720
6May 27, 199610.14−2.86Below flood stage7,980
7Feb 10, 20099.23−3.77Below flood stage4,000
8Mar 19, 19789.15−3.85Below flood stage5,500
9Feb 19, 20208.42−4.58Below flood stage—
10Mar 13, 20017.83−5.17Below flood stage4,000
11Feb 25, 20157.61−5.39Below flood stage—
12May 28, 19957.46−5.54Below flood stage3,600
13Jun 18, 19797.15−5.85Below flood stage3,320
14Jun 5, 20086.91−6.09Below flood stage3,530
15Mar 3, 19946.82−6.18Below flood stage3,220
16Jan 31, 20216.59−6.41Below flood stage—
17Mar 1, 20226.58−6.42Below flood stage—
18Mar 1, 20236.47−6.53Below flood stage—
19Jul 3, 19986.46−6.54Below flood stage3,140
20Feb 20, 20176.33−6.67Below flood stage—
21Jun 14, 19826.21−6.79Below flood stage2,410
22Jun 4, 19916.17−6.83Below flood stage2,410
23Jun 16, 19805.90−7.10Below flood stage1,970
24Jun 16, 19905.80−7.20Below flood stage2,090
25Mar 4, 20185.61−7.39Below flood stage—
26Apr 24, 20105.59−7.41Below flood stage2,400
27Apr 27, 20245.51−7.49Below flood stage1,860
28Mar 14, 20035.47−7.53Below flood stage600
29Jul 20, 19695.43−7.57Below flood stage1,400
30Apr 22, 20055.43−7.57Below flood stage2,270
31Sep 30, 19775.42−7.58Below flood stage1,460
32Jul 26, 19725.41−7.59Below flood stage1,500
33Mar 9, 20145.37−7.63Below flood stage—
34May 18, 20175.29−7.71Below flood stage2,150
35May 1, 19935.24−7.76Below flood stage1,650
36Mar 13, 20025.15−7.85Below flood stage900
37May 10, 19995.05−7.95Below flood stage1,870
38Jun 11, 19865.03−7.97Below flood stage1,520
39May 18, 19754.72−8.28Below flood stage905
40Apr 6, 19874.67−8.33Below flood stage1,370
41Jul 28, 19764.59−8.41Below flood stage942
42May 28, 19734.57−8.43Below flood stage995
43Aug 28, 20144.49−8.51Below flood stage1,610
44Jan 30, 20124.43−8.57Below flood stage—
45Nov 14, 19694.41−8.59Below flood stage804
46Oct 11, 19734.38−8.62Below flood stage846
47May 17, 20154.38−8.62Below flood stage1,530
48May 4, 20124.36−8.64Below flood stage1,110
49Mar 24, 19884.31−8.69Below flood stage991
50Jun 16, 19924.31−8.69Below flood stage826

The worst floods along the Little White River

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

June 3, 1997: 13.76 ft here, minor flooding

  • MartinSD · Jun 4, 1997 · 13.48 ft · Major

April 20, 1971: 13.75 ft here, minor flooding

  • RosebudSD · Apr 20, 1971 · 11.52 ft · Minor

Gauges on the Little White River

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

Flood gauges on the Little White River
MartinSD10.014.38 ft, Mar 23, 20194
VetalSD11.012.53 ft, May 16, 19912
RosebudSD10.014.09 ft, Jun 11, 19671
White River this gaugeSD13.013.76 ft, Jun 3, 19970

Other gauges in Mellette County

Flood gauges in Mellette County
Belvidere14.015.70 ft, Feb 17, 19970

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge LWRS2, 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.