Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus water level

Name: Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus water level (U.S. Geological Survey)
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
License: https://www.usgs.gov/information-policies-and-instructions/copyrights-and-credits

River gauge, Chattahoochee River, Georgia, United States

Directions

Very low for mid-October

Water level

16.48ft Steady over the last 24 hours

Measured Oct 20, 2026, 02:30 PM EDT (21 min ago)

Flow: 1,010 cfs

History

7 days 30 days 1 year Years compared

20252026

Water level Normal range (10–90 %) Minor flood stage

What this means

The Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus is running far below normal at 16.48 ft.

That puts it 1.16 ft below the median of 17.64 ft for mid-October, based on 12 years of readings. It is 10.52 ft below the flood stage of 27.00 ft. A year ago it stood at 17.13 ft (−0.65 ft).

The level has held steady over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. In the last month it has stayed between 16.47 ft and 20.24 ft.

Fall is often low-water season on rivers, and it usually takes a few days of steady rain to change that.

Compared with 12 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Median for this date: 17.64 ft1.16 ft below the median for this date
Normal for this date: 16.93 ft – 20.42 ft8 years in 10 fall in this range (12 years of records)
Same day last year: 17.13 ft−0.65 ft
Lowest and highest in 30 days: 16.47 ft – 20.24 ft
Lowest and highest in 12 months: 16.63 ft – 24.40 ft
Highest on record: 55.20 ftMarch 15, 1929

Floating and fishing near Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus

Low water exposes gravel bars that make good wading access, but some boat ramps may be left high and dry.

Flood stage here is 27.00 ft, 10.52 ft above the current reading. Beyond it, the National Weather Service also defines moderate and major flood stages.

What happens at each level

55.00 ft: Record flooding occurs with a catastrophic and massive flood affecting Columbus and Phenix City. Most bridges will be closed with extensive damage to homes and businesses. The Weracoba and Bull Creeks will back up and cause additional damage to homes and businesses in Columbus. Portions of the Colonial Park area of south Columbus will be flooded 8 feet deep and will likely affect the water treatment plant. The USGS gage house at 14th Street will be under 6 feet of water with loss of data transmission.
52.00 ft: Widespread inundation flooding expands further into Columbus and Phenix City causing extensive damage to many homes and businesses. Most bridges will be closed. The Weracoba and Bull Creeks will back up and cause additional damage to homes and businesses in Columbus. Portions of the Colonial Park area of south Columbus will be flooded 5 feet deep and will likely affect the water treatment plant. The USGS gage house at the 14th Street bridge will be under 3 feet of water with a loss of data transmission.
49.00 ft: Widespread inundation flooding expands along the river upstream and downstream from Columbus and Phenix City causing damage to many homes and businesses. The Weracoba and Bull Creeks will back up in low lying areas and cause extensive damage to homes and businesses in Columbus. Portions of the Colonial Park area of south Columbus will be flooded two feet deep. Flood waters reach the top of USGS gage house at the 14th Street bridge with a loss of data transmission.
47.00 ft: Major flooding begins. Widespread inundation flooding occurs over portions of Bay Avenue and 14th Street in Columbus and 1st and 2nd Avenue in Phenix City. The Weracoba and Bull Creeks will back up in low lying areas and cause extensive damage to homes and businesses in Columbus. Portions of the Colonial Park area of south Columbus will begin to flood. Flood waters reach the bottom of the USGS gage house which may affect transmission of data.
45.00 ft: Significant flooding covers the River Walk in Columbus. Portions of Bay Avenue and 14th Street in Columbus and Second Avenue in Phenix City begin to flood. The Weracoba and Bull Creeks will back up and flood portions of roads and some homes in low lying areas in Columbus. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be completely flooded. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 15 feet of water.
44.00 ft: Significant flooding covers the River Walk in Columbus with flowing water up to 17 feet deep. Portions of Bay Avenue in Columbus begin to flood. The Weracoba and Bull Creeks will back up and begin to flood portions of roads and some homes in low lying areas in Columbus. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be completely flooded. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 14 feet of water.
42.00 ft: Moderate flooding begins. Significant flooding covers the River Walk in Columbus with flowing water up to 15 feet deep. The Weracoba Creek will back up and begin to flood portions of roads in south Columbus. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be completely flooded. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 12 feet of water. Portions of the Oxbow Creek Golf Course will be flooded with 7 feet of water.
41.00 ft: Minor flooding expands upstream and downstream from the gage on 14th Street. The River Walk in Columbus will be covered with flowing water up to 14 feet deep. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be flooded up to 13 feet deep and the access road to the complex will be under 6 feet of water. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 11 feet of water. Portions of the Oxbow Creek Golf Course will be flooded with 6 feet of water.
38.00 ft: Minor flooding expands upstream and downstream from the gage on 14th Street. Most of the River Walk in Columbus will be covered with flowing water up to 11 feet deep. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be flooded up to 10 feet deep and the access road to the complex will be under 3 feet of water. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 8 feet of water. Portions of the Oxbow Creek Golf Course in south Columbus will be flooded with 3 feet of water.
36.00 ft: Minor flooding expands upstream and downstream from the gage at 14th Street. Most of the River Walk in Columbus will be covered with flowing water up to 9 feet deep. The restrooms by the River Walk will begin to flood. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be flooded up to 8 feet deep and the access road to the complex will be under a foot of water. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 6 feet of water. Portions of the Oxbow Creek Golf Course in south Columbus will be flooded.
35.00 ft: Minor flooding expands upstream and downstream from the 14th Street bridge. The River Walk in Columbus will be covered with water up to 8 feet deep. A maintenance room under the Trade Center will be flooded 3 feet deep. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be flooded up to 7 feet deep and the access road to the complex will begin to flood. Large portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under 5 feet of water. Portions of the Oxbow Creek Golf Course in south Columbus will begin to flood.
32.00 ft: Minor flooding continues to expand along the river upstream and downstream from the gage on the 14th Street bridge. Large portions of the River Walk in Columbus will be completely covered with flowing water up to 5 feet deep. Flood waters reach the maintenance doors underneath the Columbus Convention and Trade Center. The Phenix City Amphitheater in Alabama will be flooded up to 4 feet deep. Portions of the River Walk in Phenix City will be under two feet of water.
16.48 ft: Right now

Impact statements from the U.S. National Weather Service.

Highest crests on record

Chance of at least minor flooding in October to December: < 5 %.

Rank	Level	Date
1	55.20 ft	March 15, 1929
2	52.60 ft	December 12, 1919
3	49.80 ft	February 26, 1961
4	48.00 ft	January 19, 1925
5	45.89 ft	April 8, 1964
6	44.40 ft	November 28, 1949
7	43.00 ft	March 21, 1943
8	42.00 ft	March 15, 1913
9	41.14 ft	March 17, 1990
10	40.24 ft	April 9, 1936

Weather at the gauge

No rain in the last 3 days.

20 Tue 77° 42° – Wind 9 mph

21 Wed 77° 46° – Wind 6 mph

22 Thu 80° 49° – Wind 6 mph

23 Fri 77° 56° – Wind 10 mph

24 Sat 75° 55° – Wind 12 mph

25 Sun 75° 55° – Wind 12 mph

26 Mon 78° 56° – Wind 10 mph

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:48 AM Sunset 07:03 PM Daylight 11 hr, 15 min Waxing gibbous 70%

Map

Other gauges on the Chattahoochee River

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Chattahoochee River at AtlantaRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	2.96 ft	Low	−0.04 ft	101 mi
Chattahoochee River at GA 280, near AtlantaRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	4.16 ft	Low	−0.10 ft	98 mi
Chattahoochee River near FairburnRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	0.28 ft	Low	−0.14 ft	84 mi
Chattahoochee River above Bear Creek, near RicoRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	0.60 ft	Very low	−0.09 ft	80 mi
Chattahoochee River near WhitesburgRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	2.98 ft	Low	−0.04 ft	70 mi
Chattahoochee River at GA 100, at FranklinRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	7.97 ft	Low	+0.03 ft	56 mi
Chattahoochee River below West Point DamRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	557.96 ft	Low	±0	33 mi
Chattahoochee River at West PointRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	2.28 ft	Low	+0.01 ft	31 mi
Chattahoochee River at Spur 39, near OmahaRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	187.21 ft	Normal	−0.01 ft	23 mi
Chattahoochee River at Coast Guard Dock at EufaulaLake, Chattahoochee River	187.55 ft	Normal	−0.02 ft	40 mi
Chattahoochee River below Wfg Dam above Fort GainesRiver gauge, Chattahoochee River	101.83 ft	Very low	+0.33 ft	59 mi
Chattahoochee River near ColumbiaLake, Chattahoochee River	102.08 ft	Very low	+0.27 ft	84 mi

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Uchee Creek near Fort MitchellRiver gauge, Uchee Creek	0.59 ft	Normal	−0.03 ft	11 mi
Upatoi Creek near ColumbusRiver gauge, Upatoi Creek	3.88 ft	Normal	−0.02 ft	11 mi
Hannahatchee Creek at Union Road, at UnionRiver gauge, Hannahatchee Creek	1.32 ft	Below flood stage	+0.02 ft	23 mi
Chewacla Creek at Chewacla State Park near AuburnRiver gauge, Chewacla Creek	1.74 ft	Normal	−0.01 ft	29 mi
Oseligee Creek near LanettRiver gauge, Oseligee Creek	3.34 ft	Normal	±0	32 mi
West Point Lake near West PointLake, West Point Lake	625.07 ft	Low	+0.01 ft	33 mi
South Fork Cowikee Creek near BatesvilleRiver gauge, South Fork Cowikee Creek	4.78 ft	Very high	−0.03 ft	36 mi

Questions and answers

How does the Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus compare with last year?

It is 0.65 ft lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 17.13 ft.

What is flood stage for the Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus?

The official flood stage is 27.00 ft. The level is currently 10.52 ft below it.

What is a normal level for the Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 17.64 ft. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 16.93 ft and 20.42 ft, based on 12 years of records.

Is gage height the same as water depth?

No. Gage height is measured from a fixed reference point chosen by the agency, so a reading of 10 ft does not mean the river is 10 ft deep.

What is the water level of Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus today?

On Oct 20, 2026, 02:30 PM EDT, the water level was 16.48 ft. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus rising or falling?

Steady over the last 24 hours. Down 1.31 ft over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus normal?

Very low for mid-October. Compared with 12 years of daily readings for this time of year.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: U.S. Geological Survey
Station code: usgs:02341460 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 32.47278, -84.99667 (WGS84)
Vertical datum: NAVD88
Update interval: every 15 minutes
Licence: Public domain. Data: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), provisional data subject to revision

Published series

Parameter	Last value	Time (UTC)	Quality
Water level	16.48 ft	2026-10-20 18:30	Provisional
Flow	1,010 cfs	2026-10-20 18:30	Provisional

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How to cite

U.S. Geological Survey: Chattahoochee River at 14th St, at Columbus (usgs:02341460). Accessed October 20, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-states/georgia/chattahoochee-river-at-14th-st-at-columbus

How we check values

Each reading is stored as published. We hold back values that jump faster than physically plausible and show the measurement time with every value.

Readings are provisional, can be delayed or wrong and are not a flood warning. Read the disclaimer