Red River above Floodway Control Structure Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Red River above Floodway Control Structure in MB, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
- Location MB, Canada
- Watershed upper red
- Primary gauge 05OC021 (Water Survey of Canada)
About Red River above Floodway Control Structure
Red River above Floodway Control Structure is a gauged river in the Upper Red watershed in Manitoba.
What the record shows
The station has more than 56 years on record. Its highest level was 234.75 m (770.19 ft) in May 1997, and its lowest was 221.86 m (727.89 ft) in March 1990. That spread matters on the ground: this river can move across a wide band from one season to the next, so a low dock, pump intake, or bank landing should not be judged from one quiet day.
The typical high point of the year is April at 226.37 m (742.68 ft), while the typical low point is December at 222.55 m (730.13 ft). The typical annual swing is 3.82 m (12.5 ft). In prairie rivers, that fits the spring snowmelt pattern: the river usually builds toward spring, then settles back through summer and into winter.
The fastest 24-hour rise in the record was 2.56 m (8.4 ft) in April 1979. The fastest 24-hour drop was 1.02 m (3.3 ft) in April 1992. For anyone watching floodwater or setting gear, that is the warning lesson in the record: levels can change quickly in a day.
The watershed
The catchment above this station is 120100 km2 (46371 sq mi). That is the drainage area contributing to the gauge here, not a broader label on the map. On a river this size, the signal at the station reflects upstream snowpack, runoff timing, and the way spring water arrives through the basin.
For day-to-day use, the practical rhythm is simple. April tends to sit near the annual high, December near the annual low, and the gap between them is large enough to matter for crossings, shore access, and shore ice margins where those are part of local use. The record also shows that large rises can come in a single day, so a steady level one afternoon does not guarantee a steady level the next.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page compares today’s level with the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation because it tells you whether the river is running above or below its usual date-specific level, not just how high it sits above sea level.
With more than 56 years of record behind it, that comparison gives a better sense of what is normal for this date at this gauge. For flood watching, farming, and fishing, that date-based reading is the one that helps most.
How this page is built
Readings come from official government gauges and are rolled into daily records: the daily mean, high and low for every day on record. Each calendar day gets its own baseline from the full history, so the level you see is compared against what this specific date usually looks like rather than an annual average.
How Nibi Metrics works · Water stories
Nibi Metrics - live water levels, flow, and forecasts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK
Real-time water levels, forecasts, and alerts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 13,000 gauged lakes and rivers across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, and the Environment Agency for England. Every number on the platform is measured, not modelled - taken from a government gauge on the water itself and compared against that location's own historical record for this exact date.
What you can see for any monitored lake or river
The level right now, in feet or metres, updated as the source agency publishes new readings - for many stations that is every five to fifteen minutes. How today compares to typical: every location carries its own typical-for-this-date band built from its historical record, so a reading is never just a number - it is above, below, or near what this water usually does on this calendar day. Which way it is moving: a measured RISING, FALLING, or STEADY verdict computed from the gauge's own recent readings, with the rate of change - the difference between a flood ending and one beginning. What comes next: level forecasts up to 72 hours ahead, driven by the gauge's recent behaviour, upstream water, and quantitative precipitation forecasts, alongside live radar, lightning, and weather for the surrounding region.
Alerts that watch the water for you
Set a threshold on any location - a level, a distance above typical, or a rate of climb - and Nibi emails or notifies you the moment the gauge crosses it. Cottagers use it for spring freshet, anglers for river conditions, marinas and municipalities for operations. The scanning runs around the clock against the same measured data shown on every page.
Where Nibi comes from
Nibi means water in Anishinaabemowin. The platform began at a family cottage on Lake Muskoka, Ontario, where the spring melt floods the shoreline most years and the only forecast was standing on the dock, looking, and guessing. It grew into an independent, member-funded platform run by Muskoka Research Inc. - no investors, no data resale, and a privacy policy shorter than most cookie banners. The core data is free for everyone, forever; paid plans add automation like multi-location alerts, deep history, and reports.
Coverage
Nibi spans the continent: every Canadian province and territory with active federal gauges - from Vancouver Island rivers to the Muskoka lakes, prairie reservoirs, and Quebec's hydrometric network - and the United States from Maine to the Texas Hill Country, the Ohio Valley, and the Pacific Northwest. Coverage grows where the water news is: when a basin floods, its gauges join the platform with their full historical records attached. Many stations report every five to fifteen minutes; most report at least hourly; every page states exactly when its gauge last spoke.
Free forever, funded by members
The core promise is simple: the water data is free, for everyone, forever. Live levels, maps, radar, and recent history never sit behind a paywall. Paid plans fund the platform by adding automation - multi-location alerts, decades of history, longer forecasts, and PDF reports - so the people who need more carry the cost for everyone who just needs to check the lake before driving up. There are no investors and no advertising deals shaping what the data says.
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How every number is computed - About the platform
