Storm Drain at Ludlow Drive near Kempsville Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Storm Drain at Ludlow Drive near Kempsville in VA, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location VA, United States
- Watershed albemarle
- Primary gauge 0204306533 (USGS)
About Storm Drain at Ludlow Drive near Kempsville
Storm Drain at Ludlow Drive near Kempsville sits in the Albemarle watershed in Virginia.
The watershed
This station is on a small river reach in USGS coverage, with 10 years on record. For nearby owners and users, the main story is range: the water has reached 6.46 ft (1.97 m) in March 2024 and fallen to 1.42 ft (0.43 m) in May 2016. Those two marks show how far conditions can move between wet periods and drier ones.
The seasonal pattern is modest but real. The highest typical month is February at 2.51 ft (0.76 m), and the lowest typical month is July at 2.18 ft (0.66 m). The typical annual swing is 4 in (10.1 cm). That is not a large difference on paper, but on a shallow local channel it is enough to change how margins, crossings, and low inlets behave.
What the numbers say
The record high came in March 2024, which fits a rain-driven cool-season flood pattern. The record low came in May 2016, and the usual low point is in July. For people watching this water, that means the middle of the year is where low-flow stress is most likely to show up, while late winter can bring the highest sustained levels.
There is no fastest 24-hour rise listed in the facts here, so I will not guess at warning time. What is clear is that this station has enough spread between its high and low records to matter for shallow crossings, storm drains, and anything set close to the water line.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page should be read against the median for this calendar day, not as a raw elevation by itself. That comparison is better because it tells you whether today is running high or low for the season at this station.
This page uses USGS data, and the record spans 10 years. If the current reading sits above the day’s median, the water is running higher than usual for this date; if it sits below, it is lower than usual. That is the practical signal for daily decisions on this water.
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.
Water Stories
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How every number is computed - About the platform
