Ohio River at Wellsburg

Highest listed crest 54.60 ftFlood stage 36.0 ft14 crests since 1936

The Ohio River at Wellsburg crested at major flood stage 9 times among the 14 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1936 to 2024. The highest, 54.60 ft on March 19, 1936, was major flooding, 18.60 feet above flood stage. 12 other gauges on the Ohio River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 6 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 54.60 ft; March 19, 1936
Flood stage: 36.0 ft; Major flooding from 41.0 ft
Crests at major: 9; 7th of 116 gauges in West Virginia
Most recent flood crest: April 4, 2024; 41.00 ft, major flooding
Location: Brooke County; Near Steubenville (6.7 mi), Weirton (9.4 mi), Wheeling (14.6 mi)
Identifiers: NWS WELW2; 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, Ohio River at Wellsburg

Action stage	28.2	1	Jan 6, 2004	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	36.0	4	Sep 11, 2018	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage	39.0	0	—	Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage	41.0	9	Apr 4, 2024	Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

14 crests from 1936 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

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.
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, Ohio River at Wellsburg

1	Mar 19, 1936	54.60	+18.60	Major	—
2	Mar 11, 1964	46.20	+10.20	Major	—
3	Jan 20, 1996	46.20	+10.20	Major	391,000
4	Sep 19, 2004	45.10	+9.10	Major	377,900
5	Oct 17, 1954	44.40	+8.40	Major	—
6	Apr 15, 1948	42.90	+6.90	Major	—
7	Jan 23, 1959	42.40	+6.40	Major	—
8	Jan 7, 2005	42.20	+6.20	Major	337,000
9	Apr 4, 2024	41.00	+5.00	Major	320,905
10	Sep 11, 2018	38.10	+2.10	Minor	—
11	Feb 17, 2018	38.00	+2.00	Minor	—
12	Mar 7, 1964	37.80	+1.80	Minor	—
13	Mar 12, 2011	37.10	+1.10	Minor	270,262
14	Jan 6, 2004	35.90	−0.10	Action	255,000

The worst floods along the Ohio River

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

March 19, 1936: 54.60 ft here, major flooding

R C Byrd LockWV · Mar 23, 1936 · 60.45 ft · Major
MoundsvilleWV · Mar 19, 1936 · 57.90 ft · Major · its highest
PomeroyOH · Mar 21, 1936 · 56.60 ft · Major
Montgomery Lock and DamPA · Mar 18, 1936 · 55.00 ft · Major · its highest
Point PleasantWV · Mar 22, 1936 · 54.40 ft · Major
Powhatan PointOH · Mar 19, 1936 · 53.30 ft · Major · its highest
Belleville LockWV · Mar 21, 1936 · 50.60 ft · Major
PittsburghPA · Mar 18, 1936 · 46.00 ft · Major · its highest
Dashields Lock and DamPA · Mar 18, 1936 · 42.80 ft · Major · its highest
New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Mar 26, 1936 · 39.00 ft · Major

March 11, 1964: 46.20 ft here, major flooding

McAlpine LowerKY · Mar 13, 1964 · 73.46 ft · Major
CincinnatiOH · Mar 11, 1964 · 66.20 ft · Major · its highest
Cannelton Lock and DamKY · Mar 8, 1964 · 53.90 ft · Major
Tell CityIN · Mar 8, 1964 · 53.00 ft · Major
PomeroyOH · Mar 13, 1964 · 52.80 ft · Major
OwensboroKY · Mar 15, 1964 · 49.50 ft · Major
Point PleasantWV · Mar 13, 1964 · 48.87 ft · Major
Belleville LockWV · Mar 12, 1964 · 48.80 ft · Major
Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Mar 11, 1964 · 47.70 ft · Major · its highest
New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Mar 11, 1964 · 45.70 ft · Major

January 20, 1996: 46.20 ft here, major flooding

PomeroyOH · Jan 22, 1996 · 50.50 ft · Major
MoundsvilleWV · Jan 21, 1996 · 46.00 ft · Major
Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Jan 21, 1996 · 46.00 ft · Major
New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Jan 20, 1996 · 45.60 ft · Major
WheelingWV · Jan 20, 1996 · 45.40 ft · Major · its highest
Powhatan PointOH · Jan 21, 1996 · 44.70 ft · Major
SteubenvilleOH · Jan 20, 1996 · 44.00 ft · Major · its highest
Montgomery Lock and DamPA · Jan 19, 1996 · 43.00 ft · Major
PittsburghPA · Jan 20, 1996 · 34.60 ft · Major
Dashields Lock and DamPA · Jan 20, 1996 · 33.20 ft · Major

Gauges on the Ohio River

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

Flood gauges on the Ohio River

Ashland	KY	52.0	74.21 ft, Jan 27, 1937	4
Belleville Lock	WV	35.0	61.80 ft, Mar 29, 1913	15
Cairo	IL	40.0	61.72 ft, May 2, 2011	19
Cannelton Lock and Dam	KY	42.0	60.80 ft, Jan 27, 1937	8
Cincinnati	OH	52.0	66.20 ft, Mar 11, 1964	1
Clifty Creek	IN	451.0	475.90 ft, Jan 27, 1937	1
Dashields Lock and Dam	PA	25.0	42.80 ft, Mar 18, 1936	5
East Liverpool	WV	14.0	29.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936	11
Evansville	IN	42.0	53.75 ft, Jan 31, 1937	1
Golconda	IL	40.0	62.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937	3
Hannibal Lock and Dam	OH	35.0	41.90 ft, Jun 25, 1972	2
Henderson	KY	36.0	43.08 ft, Apr 12, 2025	0
Ironton	OH	52.0	54.67 ft, Feb 19, 2018	0
J.T. Myers Lock and Dam	KY	37.0	64.40 ft, Feb 1, 1937	1
Lloyd Greenup Lock	KY	54.0	64.50 ft, Mar 31, 1913	3
Marietta Pumphouse	OH	35.0	58.30 ft, Mar 29, 1913	3
Markland Lower	KY	51.0	76.10 ft, Jan 26, 1937	1
Maysville	KY	50.0	75.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937	2
McAlpine Lower	KY	55.0	85.44 ft, Jan 27, 1937	4
McAlpine Upper	KY	23.0	52.15 ft, Jan 27, 1937	7
Meldahl Dam	OH	51.0	76.00 ft, Jan 26, 1937	3
Montgomery Lock and Dam	PA	33.0	55.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	10
Moundsville	WV	37.0	57.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936	3
Mount Vernon	IN	35.0	59.21 ft, Feb 1, 1937	2
New Cumberland Lock and Dam	OH	36.0	50.20 ft, Dec 31, 1942	15
Newburgh Lock and Dam	KY	38.0	56.60 ft, Jan 31, 1937	1
Olmsted Lock and Dam Headwater	KY	36.0	48.20 ft, Feb 21, 2020	1
Owensboro	KY	40.0	54.80 ft, Jan 29, 1937	5
Paducah	KY	39.0	60.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937	7
Parkersburg	WV	36.0	45.20 ft, Mar 12, 1964	5
Pike Island Lock and Dam	WV	37.0	47.70 ft, Mar 11, 1964	5
Pittsburgh	PA	22.0	46.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	22
Point Pleasant	WV	40.0	62.80 ft, Mar 30, 1913	25
Pomeroy	OH	46.0	68.80 ft, Apr 1, 1913	34
Portsmouth	OH	50.0	53.78 ft, Apr 7, 2025	0
Powhatan Point	OH	37.0	53.30 ft, Mar 19, 1936	5
R C Byrd Lock	WV	50.0	69.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937	9
Racine Lock	WV	41.0	50.23 ft, Sep 20, 2004	3
Shawneetown	KY	33.0	65.64 ft, Jan 30, 1937	7
Smithland Lock and Dam	KY	40.0	54.83 ft, May 6, 2011	4
Steubenville	OH	36.0	44.00 ft, Jan 20, 1996	1
Tell City	IN	38.0	56.95 ft, Jan 29, 1937	6
Wellsburg this gauge	WV	36.0	54.60 ft, Mar 19, 1936	9
Wellsville	OH	11.0	20.90 ft, Jan 20, 1996	3
Wheeling	WV	36.0	45.40 ft, Jan 20, 1996	3
Willow Island Lock	WV	37.0	44.78 ft, Sep 19, 2004	2
Huntington	OH	50.0	57.52 ft, Mar 5, 1997	0

Brooke County: every hazard · River floods across the country · West Virginia

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge WELW2, 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.