PROJECT ALERT NOTICE () Lower Mississippi Flooding and Nationwide Flood Outlook

Date: Sat, 09 Mar 2019 10:40:30 EST

Summary: USGS continues in flood operational response on Lower Mississippi River, with heightened alert status for flood potential elsewhere in the United States.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) continues in a Operational Flood Response Posture in the Lower Mississippi Valley, with major flooding occurring along the lower Mississippi River. In addition to the normal flood operational activities involved in maintaining and supplying data to our stakeholders at existing USGS streamgages, USGS is making special measurements of discharge and collecting water quality data to monitor the flows being diverted through the Bonnet Carre spillway into Lake Pontchartrain upstream of New Orleans. These data are being collected in support of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

USGS offices across the United States are on heightened flood operations alert status given the short and long term outlook for continued above normal precipitation and the presence of above average snow packs in the Sierras, Northern Plains, Upper Midwest, and New England. NWS has issued a future flood outlook for major flooding for this Spring in the Central United States. Probabilistic long range river forecasts by NWS show indications of flooding elsewhere in the United States. USGS will temporarily stand up the National Flood Team for an operational status check and needs assessment on Thursday March 14, 2019.

Current Flood and High Flow Situation