DAVENPORT, Iowa — It's that time of year again; rivers in the Quad Cities are ready to crest.
This time, the culprit is heavy rainfall to the north, with Minneapolis getting up to 12 inches. Northern Iowa and Northwestern Illinois have also received plenty of rain.
Matt Wilson, senior service hydrologist for the Quad Cities National Weather Service, said the Mississippi River floods for a variety of reasons; in 2023, snow melted rapidly up north and caused floods downstream.
"So a bunch of rain up in Minnesota and Wisconsin has made its way into the streams and creeks up there," Wilson said. "Those flood into the larger rivers, and eventually it all channels down into the Mississippi and makes its way down here to us."
While the next few weeks will be rainy, Wilson said flooding from the Mississippi isn't as impacted by local rainfall.
He said that water is on its way. Local rivers and tributaries like the Rock, Iowa and Cedar Rivers are expected to crest in the next three to five days, then begin receding.
"However, on the Mississippi, we are not expecting crests until the end of next week," Wilson said. "Right now, we’re kind of looking at a crest here in the Quad Cities, at the Rock Island gauge, on or about the Fourth of July."
But the Mississippi will be high leading up to that crest. River cities from Burlington to Camanche are expected to reach moderate flood stage by June 30.
Wilson said flooding shouldn't be too intense this time around.
"Right now we are not expecting this to be significant flooding like we saw either in 2023 or 2019," Wilson said.
But he said the Quad Cities should keep its guard up—crest times and heights can always change.
"Keep an eye on the river, keep an eye on the forecasts, and we'll keep you informed," Wilson said.
You can find the most recent river gauge readings on the NWS QC's website.
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