Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau, MO
River level and flood forecast · Cape Girardeau County
Normal22.3 ftas of Mon 3 PM
The river is 9.7 ft below flood stage (32 ft).
Forecast to fall to 12.7 ft by Mon, Oct 26, 1 PM.
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Mon, Oct 12, 10:41 AM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 42 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 37 ft |
| Flood stage | 32 ft |
| Action stage | 29 ft |
| Record crest (January 2, 2016) | 48.86 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 48.86 ftThis flood will exceed the highest stage on record.
- 43 ftThe flood gate on North Main Street closes.
- 42 ftSeveral homes and structures in southern Cape Girardeau County may be inundated or cut off due to backwater flooding from the Diversion Channel. Evacuations may be required. Thousands of acres are flooded. Numerous roads are closed both along the Mississippi River and due to backwater flooding.
- 38 ftThe flood gate at Broadway closes.
- 36 ftThe flood gate on Themis Street closes.
- 32 ftMinor flooding occurs. The Mississippi River backs into several creeks producing flooding.
- 29 ftThe area north of the Little River Diversion Channel begins to flood.
Highest crests on record
- 48.86 ft — January 2, 2016
- 48.49 ft — August 8, 1993
- 47 ft — May 24, 1995
- 46.9 ft — August 3, 1993
- 46.36 ft — June 11, 2019
Recent crests: 33.74 ft (April 8, 2025) · 36.78 ft (July 12, 2024) · 35.07 ft (May 12, 2024) · 37.83 ft (March 22, 2021) · 37.49 ft (January 15, 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 (CPGM7); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.