Congaree River at Columbia, SC Water Level Today

NWS river forecast

Forecast from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service. Issued a few times a day and only while a forecast is active. Not for navigation.

Last 30 days

About this gauge

USGS gauge 02169500 sits on the Congaree River and reads everything draining 7,850 square miles of the Congaree basin. Its datum sits 112 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1940, 87 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

Three gauged sites sit upstream of here. The closest is Broad River near Columbia, SC, reading 5,230 square miles. This gauge adds the 2,620 square miles that drain in between. Downstream the next reading comes from Congaree River at Congaree Np near Gadsden, SC at 8,290 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 95% of the water measured there. Water passing here goes on to Congaree River at U.s Hwy 601 near Fort Motte, SC.

Normal flows here

The Congaree River runs a median of 5,695 cfs at this gauge across 87 years of record. March is the fullest month at a median 9,140 cfs, and September the leanest at 4,430 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 150,000 cfs in 1977, and the lowest is 576 cfs in 2007.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1940 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The Congaree River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 19 feet. NWS starts watching it at 10 feet. The highest crest on record is 39.8 feet, in August 1908.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge COLS1. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.