James River near Forestburg, SD

Sanborn County, South Dakota · USGS gauge 06477000 · NWS FORS2 · James River flood status · South Dakota river levels

Is James River near Forestburg, SD flooding right now?

James River near Forestburg, SD measured 5.00 ft on 2026-09-11 01:15:00 UTC. That observation was 7.0 ft below its 12 ft flood stage. This is the latest available reading, not a guarantee of current conditions.

Gauge height
5.00 ft
as of 75 min ago
Streamflow
198 cfs
data refreshed 12 min ago

Minor flooding here begins at 12 ft, with major flooding at 18 ft. The highest crest on record was 20.61 ft on Sun, Apr 6, 1997.

Streamflow outlook

NOAA National Water Model forecast, issued 15 hours ago. The NWM models discharge for every river reach in the country, including the many gauges the National Weather Service does not forecast individually. It is a model, not an official NWS river forecast, and it predicts flow rather than water level.

Flood stages at this gauge

CategoryStageCurrent distance
Action10 ft5.0 ft below
Minor flood12 ft7.0 ft below
Moderate flood14.5 ft9.5 ft below
Major flood18 ft13.0 ft below

New to these numbers? What does flood stage mean? · How to read a river gauge · Why is the river rising?

Highest crests on record

StageDate
20.61 ft1997-04-06
20.27 ft2011-03-25
19.14 ft2010-03-25
18.93 ft2007-05-08
18.84 ft2001-04-10

Last 7 days

Past 7 days · 5.00–5.55 ft

Nearby gauges

GaugeDistanceCounty
Firesteel Creek near Mount Vernon, SD16.2 miDavison County
James River near Mitchell, SD23.0 miHanson County
James River at Huron, SD27.6 miBeadle County
East Fork Vermillion River near Ramona, SD35.2 miMiner County
Little Vermillion River near Salem, SD37.0 miMcCook County
Provisional data: Real-time readings are provisional and subject to revision by the USGS — sensors can be affected by ice, debris, or equipment malfunction. Do not rely on this site for decisions involving personal safety; follow official guidance from the National Weather Service and local authorities.

Sources: USGS monitoring location · NWS gauge & forecast