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Flood Potential Outlook
Issued by NWS Grand Forks, ND
Issued by NWS Grand Forks, ND
529 FGUS73 KFGF 131737 ESFFGF NDC005-027-071-281200- Probabilistic Hydrologic Outlook National Weather Service Grand Forks ND 1137 AM CST Thu Feb 13 2025 ...DEVILS LAKE OUTLOOK FOR FLOOD POTENTIAL... Devils and Stump Lakes Long-Range Probabilistic Outlook The National Weather Service provides long-range probabilistic hydrologic outlooks for Devils and Stump lakes between January and September. They will not be provided between October and December. Depending on the season, the high or low water probabilities may be omitted due to their applicability to the hydrologic situation. .OUTLOOK SUMMARY... Note: This outlook incorporates a daily average of 350 cfs worth of pumping operations on Devils Lake from May 15th through October 30th. Precipitation last fall overall (September-November 2024) was above normal across northern portions of the basin while slightly below normal in the far south. However, the fall season did end with well above normal precipitation throughout the month of November. This allowed soils to be fairly saturated moving into the winter freeze- up period. Thus far this winter, slightly above normal precipitation and snowfall has occurred across far northern portions of the basin while remaining below normal across the south. Very little snowpack currently resides across much of the basin with the exception being in the far northeast. Climate outlooks continue to indicate a strong signal for below normal temperatures through the remainder of the winter and into the spring. There is no strong signal either way for above, below, or near normal precipitation into the spring. The next lake exceedance numbers will be issued on Thursday, February 27, 2025. .Chances of Devils and Stump Lakes Rising Above Given Lake Levels... The probability of exceeding a given lake level is the percentage of maximum lake level rises that are above that level for all the years (1949-2019) that were run through the model using the precipitation and temperatures for those years during the valid period of the outlook. Interpretation Aid: There is a 50 percent chance that Devils Lake will rise above 51.0 feet during the valid period and a 5 percent chance that it will rise above 52.6 feet. Note: The current gage zero datum of the Devils Lake at Creel Bay gage is 1401.33 feet NAVD88 or 1400.00 feet NGVD29. The gage zero datum of the Stump Lake at East Stump Lake gage is 1401.21 feet NAVD88 or 1400.00 feet NGVD29. Probabilities for Exceeding Listed Lake Levels FROM FEBRUARY 10, 2025 TO SEPTEMBER 30, 2025 LOCATION 95% 90% 75% 50% 25% 10% 05% -------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ Devils Lake..... CREEL BAY 50.4 50.5 50.8 51.0 51.4 52.1 52.6 Stump Lake..... EAST STUMP LAKE 50.4 50.5 50.8 51.0 51.4 52.1 52.6 .Current and Previous Record High Lake Levels... * The current height of Devils Lake is 1449.4 feet NGVD29. * The current height of Stump Lake is 1449.4 feet NGVD29. * USGS daily average height records for Devils Lake at the Creel Bay gage: ...1454.30 feet on June 27, 2011 ...1452.05 feet on June 27, 2010 ...1450.93 feet on June 27, 2009 ...1449.20 feet on May 9, 2006 ...1449.18 feet on June 17, 2004 ...1449.17 feet on August 2, 2005 Note: All previous records are recorded in NGVD29. .OUTLOOK SCHEDULE... - Between January and May, only the high water exceedances will be provided with valid periods ending at the end of September. - Special Spring Flood and Water Resources Outlooks will be issued from mid-February through mid-March. - For June and July, both high-water and low-water exceedances will be provided. - For August and September, only the low-water exceedances will be provided with valid periods ending at the end of November. - No probability information will be provided from October through December. .ADDITIONAL INFORMATION... These lake level probabilities can be used for risk management as an indication of the range of lake levels that may be possible during the valid period of the outlook. However, note that it is possible that lake levels may still reach above/fall below the 95th and 5th percentile values. This outlook is also presented as graphs of the potential lake levels for the full outlook period as well as weekly probabilities. These graphics, and explanations that help in interpreting them, can be found on the NWS Grand Forks NWPS web page by clicking on "Rivers and Lakes" above the map at www.weather.gov/fgf. Wind and wave forecasts for Devils and Stump Lakes are available for a 7-day period when the lakes are sufficiently ice-free at www.weather.gov/fgf/lake_info. If you have any questions, please contact the NWS at 701-772-0720. You can follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NWSGrandForks and on X at @NWSGrandForks. $$ weather.gov/fgf NNNN