Cumberland River at Barbourville, KY
River level and flood forecast · Knox County
Normal2.0 ftas of Mon 4:30 PM
The river is 25.0 ft below flood stage (27 ft).
Forecast to fall to 1.7 ft by Sat, Oct 17, 8 AM.
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Mon, Oct 12, 10:22 AM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 38 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 33 ft |
| Flood stage | 27 ft |
| Action stage | 21.5 ft |
| Record crest (April 6, 1977) | 45.91 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 50 ftOvertopping or failure of floodwall is expected. Full evacuation of Barbourville is necessary.
- 45.91 ftFlooding will exceed the highest flood on record. Homes and businesses must be evacuated.
- 40.29 ftClosing of flood gates begins.
- 40 ftMajor flood threatens the protected area of Barbourville. US 25 E floods on both sides of the city.
- 39.6 ftKY 11 floods.
- 39.4 ftHomes on Miller Road and Boone Heights begin flooding.
- 38.5 ftHomes begin flooding in Apple Grove, Sharp Gap and Smokey.
- 36.6 ftRoads begin flooding in Heidrick. Homes begin flooding on South Main Street.
- 34 ftFlooding threatens homes and businesses in unprotected areas.
- 30 ftManchester Street and Miller Road east of US 25 E flood.
- 27 ftLow lying roads flood. Manchester street floods.
Highest crests on record
- 45.91 ft — April 6, 1977
- 42.65 ft — November 29, 1973
- 42.3 ft — January 1, 1970
- 42.15 ft — January 30, 1957
- 41.6 ft — March 14, 1975
Recent crests: 38.07 ft (February 17, 2025) · 35.45 ft (March 29, 2021) · 30.29 ft (March 2, 2021) · 28.77 ft (May 20, 2020) · 29.88 ft (April 14, 2020)
Up and down the river, and nearby
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (BBVK2); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.