Ohio River at Wheeling
Highest listed crest 45.40 ftFlood stage 36.0 ft14 crests since 1979
The Ohio River at Wheeling crested at major flood stage 3 times among the 14 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1979 to 2024. The highest, 45.40 ft on January 20, 1996, was major flooding, 9.40 feet above flood stage. 28 other gauges on the Ohio River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 2 at their own highest listed crest.
The gauge
- Highest listed crest
- 45.40 ft
- January 20, 1996; 356,000 cubic feet per second
- Flood stage
- 36.0 ft
- Major flooding from 42.0 ft
- Crests at major
- 3
- 25th of 116 gauges in West Virginia
- Most recent flood crest
- April 13, 2024
- 37.80 ft, minor flooding
Flood stages
The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.
| Action stage | 26.7 | 4 | Mar 24, 2007 |
| Flood stage (minor) | 36.0 | 6 | Apr 13, 2024 |
| Moderate flood stage | 40.0 | 1 | Apr 5, 2024 |
| Major flood stage | 42.0 | 3 | Jan 7, 2005 |
Every listed crest
14 crests from 1979 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.
- 34 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 41.70 ft on Jan 22, 1901; 43.30 ft on May 2, 1902; 42.20 ft on Jan 24, 1904; 42.70 ft on Mar 22, 1905; 50.10 ft on Mar 15, 1907; 42.80 ft on Mar 20, 1908; and more.
Highest crests
| 1 | Jan 20, 1996 | 45.40 | +9.40 | Major |
| 2 | Sep 19, 2004 | 45.30 | +9.30 | Major |
| 3 | Jan 7, 2005 | 42.17 | +6.17 | Major |
| 4 | Apr 5, 2024 | 41.49 | +5.49 | Moderate |
| 5 | Jan 1, 1991 | 39.30 | +3.30 | Minor |
| 6 | Feb 18, 2018 | 38.93 | +2.93 | Minor |
| 7 | Sep 11, 2018 | 38.34 | +2.34 | Minor |
| 8 | Feb 26, 1979 | 37.80 | +1.80 | Minor |
| 9 | Apr 13, 2024 | 37.80 | +1.80 | Minor |
| 10 | Mar 12, 2011 | 37.22 | +1.22 | Minor |
| 11 | Jan 6, 2004 | 35.70 | −0.30 | Action |
| 12 | Jan 13, 2005 | 34.60 | −1.40 | Action |
| 13 | Mar 16, 2007 | 33.12 | −2.88 | Action |
| 14 | Mar 24, 2007 | 30.50 | −5.50 | Action |
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.
January 20, 1996: 45.40 ft here, major flooding
- PomeroyOH · Jan 22, 1996 · 50.50 ft · Major
- WellsburgWV · Jan 20, 1996 · 46.20 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
- 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
September 19, 2004: 45.30 ft here, major flooding
- PomeroyOH · Sep 19, 2004 · 52.20 ft · Major
- Racine LockWV · Sep 20, 2004 · 50.23 ft · Major · its highest
- MoundsvilleWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 47.00 ft · Major
- Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 46.30 ft · Major
- Belleville LockWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.80 ft · Major
- Powhatan PointOH · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.60 ft · Major
- WellsburgWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.10 ft · Major
- Willow Island LockWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 44.78 ft · Major · its highest
- New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Sep 19, 2004 · 44.50 ft · Major
- ParkersburgWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 43.73 ft · Major
January 7, 2005: 42.17 ft here, major flooding
- PomeroyOH · Jan 9, 2005 · 50.40 ft · Major
- Racine LockWV · Jan 9, 2005 · 48.87 ft · Major
- Marietta PumphouseOH · Jan 8, 2005 · 43.60 ft · Major
- Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Jan 7, 2005 · 43.04 ft · Major
- Willow Island LockWV · Jan 8, 2005 · 42.90 ft · Major
- Powhatan PointOH · Jan 7, 2005 · 42.65 ft · Major
- ParkersburgWV · Jan 8, 2005 · 42.41 ft · Major
- WellsburgWV · Jan 7, 2005 · 42.20 ft · Major
- New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Jan 7, 2005 · 41.00 ft · Major
- PittsburghPA · Jan 6, 2005 · 28.43 ft · Major
Gauges on the Ohio River
Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.
| Ashland | KY | 74.21 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 4 |
| Belleville Lock | WV | 61.80 ft, Mar 29, 1913 | 15 |
| Cairo | IL | 61.72 ft, May 2, 2011 | 19 |
| Cannelton Lock and Dam | KY | 60.80 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 8 |
| Cincinnati | OH | 66.20 ft, Mar 11, 1964 | 1 |
| Clifty Creek | IN | 475.90 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 1 |
| Dashields Lock and Dam | PA | 42.80 ft, Mar 18, 1936 | 5 |
| East Liverpool | WV | 29.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 11 |
| Evansville | IN | 53.75 ft, Jan 31, 1937 | 1 |
| Golconda | IL | 62.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937 | 3 |
| Hannibal Lock and Dam | OH | 41.90 ft, Jun 25, 1972 | 2 |
| Henderson | KY | 43.08 ft, Apr 12, 2025 | 0 |
| Ironton | OH | 54.67 ft, Feb 19, 2018 | 0 |
| J.T. Myers Lock and Dam | KY | 64.40 ft, Feb 1, 1937 | 1 |
| Lloyd Greenup Lock | KY | 64.50 ft, Mar 31, 1913 | 3 |
| Marietta Pumphouse | OH | 58.30 ft, Mar 29, 1913 | 3 |
| Markland Lower | KY | 76.10 ft, Jan 26, 1937 | 1 |
| Maysville | KY | 75.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 2 |
| McAlpine Lower | KY | 85.44 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 4 |
| McAlpine Upper | KY | 52.15 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 7 |
| Meldahl Dam | OH | 76.00 ft, Jan 26, 1937 | 3 |
| Montgomery Lock and Dam | PA | 55.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936 | 10 |
| Moundsville | WV | 57.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 3 |
| Mount Vernon | IN | 59.21 ft, Feb 1, 1937 | 2 |
| New Cumberland Lock and Dam | OH | 50.20 ft, Dec 31, 1942 | 15 |
| Newburgh Lock and Dam | KY | 56.60 ft, Jan 31, 1937 | 1 |
| Olmsted Lock and Dam Headwater | KY | 48.20 ft, Feb 21, 2020 | 1 |
| Owensboro | KY | 54.80 ft, Jan 29, 1937 | 5 |
| Paducah | KY | 60.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937 | 7 |
| Parkersburg | WV | 45.20 ft, Mar 12, 1964 | 5 |
| Pike Island Lock and Dam | WV | 47.70 ft, Mar 11, 1964 | 5 |
| Pittsburgh | PA | 46.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936 | 22 |
| Point Pleasant | WV | 62.80 ft, Mar 30, 1913 | 25 |
| Pomeroy | OH | 68.80 ft, Apr 1, 1913 | 34 |
| Portsmouth | OH | 53.78 ft, Apr 7, 2025 | 0 |
| Powhatan Point | OH | 53.30 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 5 |
| R C Byrd Lock | WV | 69.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 9 |
| Racine Lock | WV | 50.23 ft, Sep 20, 2004 | 3 |
| Shawneetown | KY | 65.64 ft, Jan 30, 1937 | 7 |
| Smithland Lock and Dam | KY | 54.83 ft, May 6, 2011 | 4 |
| Steubenville | OH | 44.00 ft, Jan 20, 1996 | 1 |
| Tell City | IN | 56.95 ft, Jan 29, 1937 | 6 |
| Wellsburg | WV | 54.60 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 9 |
| Wellsville | OH | 20.90 ft, Jan 20, 1996 | 3 |
| Wheeling this gauge | WV | 45.40 ft, Jan 20, 1996 | 3 |
| Willow Island Lock | WV | 44.78 ft, Sep 19, 2004 | 2 |
| Huntington | OH | 57.52 ft, Mar 5, 1997 | 0 |
Other gauges in Ohio County
| Pike Island Lock and Dam | 47.70 ft, Mar 11, 1964 | 5 |
| Elm Grove | 13.83 ft, Sep 17, 2004 | 0 |
Ohio County: every hazard · River floods across the country · West Virginia
NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge WLGW2, 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.