Flat River at Dam near Bahama, NC Flow & Water Level

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 02086500 sits on the Flat River and reads everything draining 168 square miles of the Upper Neuse basin. Its datum sits 256 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1927, 72 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

Lake Michie at Dam near Bahama, NC sits immediately upstream, so dam releases rather than rainfall set the flow here. Five gauged sites sit upstream of here. The closest is Lake Michie at Dam near Bahama, NC, reading 167 square miles. Downstream the next reading comes from Falls Lake at Interstate 85 near Redwood, NC at 512 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 33% of the water measured there.

Normal flows here

The Flat River runs a median of 40 cfs at this gauge across 72 years of record. March is the fullest month at a median 157 cfs, and September the leanest at 8.0 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 10,500 cfs in 1930, and the lowest is 0.0 cfs in 2010.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1927 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The Flat River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 16 feet. NWS starts watching it at 15 feet. The highest crest on record is 23.5 feet, in September 1998.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge BAHN7. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.