Fall Creek at Ithaca, NY
River level and flood forecast · Tompkins County
The river is 4.9 ft below flood stage (6 ft).
Forecast to rise to 1.3 ft Mon 2 PM, below the 6 ft flood stage.
Flow: 83 cubic feet per second (USGS).
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Mon, Oct 12, 11:14 AM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 7 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 6.5 ft |
| Flood stage | 6 ft |
| Action stage | 5 ft |
| Record crest (February 21, 1971) | 11.16 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 11.2 ftIce jam flood crest from February 1971.
- 9.5 ftCatastrophic flood damage occurred from Etna to downtown Ithaca in July of 1935.
- 8.4 ftDevastating flood of October 1981. Bridges destroyed. Homes evacuated. Swiftwater rescues occurred from Etna to Forest Home. Several streets in Ithaca's Northside neighborhood were flooded.
- 8 ftFlooding will damage several bridges upstream of the gage from Varna to Etna.
- 7.5 ftThis is the crest stage from the January 1996 rain on snowmelt with ice jams flooding.
- 7 ftWidespread flooding of properties and some homes occurs between Varna and Etna. If Cayuga Lake is high, water from Fall Creek completely inundates Stewart Park.
- 6.5 ftLower Creek Road is inundated between Varna and Etna. Main Street near Etna is flooded. A few properties between Etna and Varna are affected by flooding. If Cayuga Lake is high, water from Fall Creek will flood roads in Stewart Park.
- 6.1 ftThis is the crest stage of the April 2005 flood.
- 6 ftWidespread flooding of unoccupied lands occurs nearest the river. Portions of Lower Creek Road will flood.
Highest crests on record
- 11.16 ft — February 21, 1971
- 9.52 ft — July 8, 1935
- 9.11 ft — February 25, 1977
- 8.84 ft — February 22, 1955
- 8.76 ft — January 21, 1959
Recent crests: 6.64 ft (February 12, 2009) · 6.1 ft (April 3, 2005) · 7.47 ft (January 19, 1996) · 6 ft (February 28, 1995) · 6.62 ft (January 18, 1990)
Up and down the river, and nearby
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (FLLN6); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.