Des Plaines River at Des Plaines (Algonquin Road), IL
River level and flood forecast · Cook County
Normal9.8 ftas of Mon 3 PM
The river is 3.2 ft below flood stage (13 ft).
Flow: 444 cubic feet per second (USGS).
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Sun, Dec 31, 6 PM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 20 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 18 ft |
| Flood stage | 13 ft |
| Action stage | 12.5 ft |
| Record crest (September 14, 2008) | 21 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 25 ftWater reaches the top of the levee near Rand Road and Ballard Road.
- 24 ftWidespread inundation of structures and roadways in the floodplain may reach Lee Street and Elk Boulevard near downtown Des Plaines.
- 21.5 ftInundation of structures and roadways reaches up to 1 block from the river in Des Plaines.
- 20.5 ftWater reaches the top of the floodwall along Miner Street causing numerous structures and roadways to be threatened near Miner Street and Busse Highway. Structures threatened along Prairie Avenue near South River Road. Algonquin Road threatened east of the river.
- 19.5 ftNumerous residences threatened along Big Bend Drive and Grove Avenue. A few structures threatened along South River Road.
- 19 ftWithout flood protection, South River Road is threatened near Thacker Street.
- 18.5 ftBig Bend Drive threatened.
- 17 ftCentral Road is threatened and Golf Road is threatened near College Drive.
- 15 ftBuildings threatened at Methodist Campground.
- 14 ftLow-lying Methodist Campground property and forest preserve property threatened near Des Plaines.
- 13.5 ftCamp Ground Road and Des Plaines River Trail threatened near Miner Street.
Highest crests on record
- 21 ft — September 14, 2008
- 20.24 ft — May 18, 2020
- 17.92 ft — September 15, 2019
- 17.08 ft — May 2, 2020
- 15.59 ft — March 29, 2020
Recent crests: 20.24 ft (May 18, 2020) · 17.08 ft (May 2, 2020) · 15.59 ft (March 29, 2020) · 14.38 ft (October 27, 2019) · 17.92 ft (September 15, 2019)
Up and down the river, and nearby
- UpstreamDes Plaines River near Des Plaines, IL
- DownstreamDes Plaines River at River Forest, IL
- Weller Creek at Des Plaines, IL
- North Branch Chicago River at Niles, IL
- McDonald Creek near Mount Prospect, IL
- Salt Creek (IL) at Elk Grove Village, IL
- Salt Creek (IL) at Wood Dale, IL
- Salt Creek (IL) at Rolling Meadows, IL
- West Fork North Branch Chicago River at Northbrook, IL
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (DMPI2); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.