Middle Oconee River near Arcade, GA
River level and flood forecast · Jackson County
Normal3.5 ftas of Mon 3:30 PM
The river is 12.5 ft below flood stage (16 ft).
Forecast to fall to 2.4 ft by Sat, Oct 17, 8 AM.
Flow: 307 cubic feet per second (USGS).
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Mon, Oct 12, 10:34 AM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 27 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 21 ft |
| Flood stage | 16 ft |
| Action stage | 15 ft |
| Record crest (March 18, 1990) | 25.35 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 30 ftCatastrophic flooding never seen before occurs in the woodlands and fields upstream and downstream from Georgia Highway 82. The water level begins to top the bridge and floods the road one foot deep. A house just downstream will be completely flooded. Several homes on Bismarck Circle Road will be flooded with up to 5 feet of water. An old storage building near the bridge will be flooded and the crawl space of a house will be flooded.
- 29 ftRecord flooding never seen before continues in the woodlands and fields upstream and downstream from Georgia Highway 82. The water level hits the bridge and causes erosion to the sides and floods the road. County officials should have it closed. A house just downstream will be completely flooded. Several homes on Bismarck Circle Road will be flooded with 4 feet of water. An old storage building and residential yard near the bridge will be flooded and the water will reach the foundation of a house.
- 28 ftRecord flooding never seen before occurs in the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. The water level hits the bridge and may cause erosion to the sides. County officials may close it. A house just downstream will be flooded with 5 feet of water. A few homes on Bismarck Circle Road will be flooded with two feet of water upstream from the gage. An old storage building and residential yard near the bridge will be flooded.
- 27 ftMajor flooding begins. Flooding never seen before occurs in the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. The water level hits the bridge and may cause erosion to the sides. County officials may close it. A house just downstream will be flooded with 4 feet of water. A few homes on Bismarck Circle Road will be flooded with a foot of water upstream from the gage. An old storage building and residential yard near the bridge will be flooded.
- 26 ftSignificant flooding continues to expand further into the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. The water level begins to hit the bridge and county officials may close it. A house just downstream will be flooded with 3 feet of water. A few homes on Bismarck Circle Road will begin to flood upstream from the gage. Water will reach the foundation of an old storage building near the bridge.
- 25 ftSignificant flooding continues to expand further into the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. The water level reaches the bottom of the bridge. A house just downstream will be flooded with two feet of water. The water will reach the foundations of a few homes on Bismarck Circle Road upstream from the gage and the rock drive of a house near the bridge.
- 23 ftSignificant flooding expands into the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. A house just downstream will be surrounded with water and begin to flood. Flooding begins on low portions of Bismarck Circle Road upstream from the gage.
- 21 ftModerate flooding begins. Significant flooding occurs in the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. A residential yard will be completely flooded with the water reaching the foundation of a house just downstream. The flood waters will be reaching Bismarck Circle Road upstream from the gage.
- 20 ftMinor flooding continues to expand further into the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. A few dirt access roads and a residential yard just downstream will be flooded with up to 4 feet of water.
- 18 ftMinor flooding continues in the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. A few dirt access roads and a residential yard just downstream will be flooded with up to two feet of water.
- 16 ftFlood Stage is reached. Minor flooding begins in the woodlands...fields and pasture upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82. A few dirt access roads will be flooded. A residential yard just downstream will begin to flood.
- 15 ftBankfull conditions are reached along the river upstream and downstream from the gage at Georgia Highway 82.
Highest crests on record
- 25.35 ft — March 18, 1990
- 24.97 ft — February 4, 1998
- 24.56 ft — April 20, 2019
- 23.86 ft — January 10, 2024
- 23.5 ft — July 2, 2003
Recent crests: 21.06 ft (February 14, 2025) · 18.31 ft (September 28, 2024) · 17.01 ft (March 7, 2024) · 17.23 ft (February 13, 2024) · 23.86 ft (January 10, 2024)
Up and down the river, and nearby
- DownstreamMiddle Oconee River at US 78 at Athens, GA
- Mulberry Creek (GA) near Winder, GA
- Parks Creek at Lyle Field Road near Jefferson, GA
- North Oconee River at College Street at Athens, GA
- North Oconee River at Woodbridge Road near Commerce, GA
- Apalachee River at Snows Mill Road near Bishop, GA
- Wheeler Creek at Bill Cheek Road near Auburn, GA
- Grove Creek at US 441 and GA 15 near Commerce, GA
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (ACDG1); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.