Raccoon River at Van Meter, IA
River level and flood forecast · Dallas County
Normal8.4 ftas of Mon 2:47 PM
The river is 8.6 ft below flood stage (17 ft).
Flow: 6,910 cubic feet per second (USGS).
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Sat, Oct 3, 1:30 PM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 23 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 22 ft |
| Flood stage | 17 ft |
| Action stage | 15 ft |
| Record crest (July 10, 1993) | 26.34 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 26 ftWater affects the railroad line north of Van Meter.
- 23.8 ftWater is over I-80 near Van Meter.
- 23.3 ftWater reaches the bottom of the I-80 bridge near Van Meter.
- 22.7 ftWater is at the shoulder of the southbound I-35 exit to Iowa 5.
- 20 ftWater affects R Ave just north of the river.
- 19 ftFlooding of several county roads occurs.
- 17 ftWater threatens secondary bridges along US 6 east of Adel.
- 15 ftFlooding occurs in the sand and gravel quarries just south of I-80.
- 13 ftOverflow occurs onto much of the east bank.
- 12 ftWater affects agricultural land primarily along the upstream north bank.
Highest crests on record
- 26.34 ft — July 10, 1993
- 23.29 ft — June 15, 1998
- 23.09 ft — June 25, 2015
- 22.69 ft — July 1, 1986
- 22.67 ft — June 12, 2008
Recent crests: 11.79 ft (July 30, 2025) · 13.97 ft (May 22, 2024) · 10.56 ft (February 28, 2023) · 13.09 ft (June 7, 2022) · 5.18 ft (July 12, 2021)
Up and down the river, and nearby
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (VNMI4); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.