Red River below Floodway Control Structure Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Red River below Floodway Control Structure in MB, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
- Location MB, Canada
- Watershed upper red
- Primary gauge 05OC020 (Water Survey of Canada)
About Red River below Floodway Control Structure
Red River below Floodway Control Structure is a gauged river in the Upper Red watershed in Manitoba.
What the record shows
The station record runs for more than 56 years. The highest level in that span is 231.97 m (761.06 ft), in May 1997. The lowest is 223.09 m (731.93 ft), in November 1972.
The seasonal pattern is clear. The typical high point is in April at 228.27 m (748.9 ft), and the typical low point is in September at 224.05 m (735.07 ft). That gives a typical annual swing of 4.22 m (13.8 ft).
For people living along the river, that swing matters more than a single day’s level. Docks, pumps, and low banks need to tolerate a few metres of movement through the year.
The fastest 24-hour rise in the record is 1.67 m (5.5 ft), in April 2005. The fastest 24-hour drop is 1.72 m (5.6 ft), in June 2004. Those are the kinds of changes that shorten warning time for anything close to the bank.
The watershed
This gauge sits in the Upper Red watershed and watches the river below the Floodway Control Structure. In prairie rivers, the big changes usually come with spring snowmelt, which is when high water tends to arrive first and fastest. After that, summer is the recession season, when levels ease back toward the yearly low.
That pattern is reflected here: April is the typical high month, while September is the typical low month. For cottagers and anglers, that means spring can bring a wide and fast-moving river, while late summer is more likely to expose bars, shore edges, and shallow access points.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is best read as today’s level compared with the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation alone, because it shows whether the river is running typical for the season at this spot.
With more than 56 years of record behind it, this station gives a solid seasonal benchmark. A level above the daily median suggests the river is running fuller than usual for the date; a level below it points to a quieter stage.
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
