City of Cedar Rapids

The Cedar River is part of the Middle Cedar Watershed (HUC8 07080205) which encompasses approximately 2,400 square miles of land across nine counties and is part of the larger Cedar River Basin which extends from Minnesota to southeast Iowa. The total drainage of the river here in Cedar Rapids is approximately 6,710 square miles. This watershed provides the bulk of our water supply. You can learn more about our water supply and monitoring of the watershed here.

Combined with rainfalls and winter weather our region faces several types of flood risk;

• Riverine flooding where water rises over the banks, flooding the area.
• Flash Flooding, where extreme rainfall, snow melt or a combination of the two overwhelm the area.
• Ice/Debris Jams breaking loose and sending trapped water downstream, overwhelming the river.

While these types of flooding events can happen, you can be prepared. You can check the following link to see stream gauges along the Cedar River: Cedar River Flood Levels and Stream Gauges

You can check if your property is within a floodplain or near one at the FEMA Flood Map Search Service. Additionally you can check with Development Services as well.

If a flood or other natural disaster hit, would you be ready? Find out at- Are You Iowa Ready?

The Cedar River was one of America's Most Endangered Rivers for 2010 because of its outdated flood management system, according to the American Rivers organization. Since then changes made have lowered the Cedar River from the top 10, but it remains at risk. The challenges it faces could have sweeping impacts on our ability to enjoy the river.

Annual City Flood Mailer