2025-12-20T00:00:00-07:00
...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION FOR IN AND IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT TO THE FOOTHILLS, BETWEEN 5500 AND 9000 FEET, FOR BOULDER AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES ON FRIDAY... Strong west winds of 30-40 mph with gusts as high as 85 mph in the foothills of Boulder and northern Jefferson Counties will continue until early evening. Relative humidity values had dropped into the upper single digits and lower teens. Thus, the Particularly Dangerous Situation will remain in place til around 5-6 pm, with only a slow improvement thereafter as winds slowly weaken. Red Flag conditions, however, will persist through the rest of the evening as we remain in a near record warm, dry, and windy airmass along the Front Range through midnight. In fact, strong, gusty winds will persist through much of the night with only a slow improvement in humidity values. Thus, near critical Red Flag conditions will occur into early Saturday morning. While most of the Denver metro area has seen lighter winds prevail most of the day, a period of strong, gusty winds is expected to develop this evening and likely last past midnight, producing Red Flag conditions there. * AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 238, 240, 241, 242 and 243. * TIMING...Until midnight MST tonight. * WINDS...West 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 9 percent. * IMPACTS...Conditions will be favorable for rapid fire spread. Avoid outdoor burning and any activity that may produce a spark and start a wildfire.
Summary
Total streamflow across the
Cahaba River
was last observed at
1,325
cfs, and is expected to yield approximately
2,628
acre-ft of water today; about 22%
of normal.
River levels are low and may signify a drought.
Average streamflow for this time of year is
5,980 cfs,
with recent peaks last observed
on
2014-04-08 when daily discharge volume was observed at
130,420 cfs.
Maximum discharge along the river is currently at the
Cahaba River Near Marion Junction Al
reporting a streamflow rate of 617 cfs.
However, the streamgauge with the highest stage along the river is the
Cahaba River Near Hoover
with a gauge stage of 2.91 ft.
This river is monitored from 9 different streamgauging stations along the Cahaba River, the highest being situated at an altitude of 679 ft, the
Cahaba River At Trussville.
River Details
| Last Updated | 2025-12-19 |
| Discharge Volume | 2,628 ACRE-FT |
| Streamflow |
1,325.05 cfs
+222.02 cfs (+20.13%) |
| Percent of Normal | 22.16% |
| Maximum |
130,420.0 cfs
2014-04-08 |
| Seasonal Avg | 5,980 cfs |
River Streamflow Levels
| Streamgauge | Streamflow | Gauge Stage | 24hr Change (%) | % Normal | Minimum (cfs) | Maximum (cfs) | Air Temp | Elevation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Cahaba River At Trussville
USGS 02423130 |
0 cfs | 1.65 ft | -72.39 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near Mountain Brook Al
USGS 02423380 |
49 cfs | 0.78 ft | 67.92 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near Hoover
USGS 02423496 |
49 cfs | 2.91 ft | 196.95 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near Cahaba Heights Al
USGS 02423425 |
26 cfs | 1.56 ft | 127.83 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near Helena Al
USGS 02423555 |
118 cfs | 1.59 ft | 137.42 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near Acton Al
USGS 02423500 |
62 cfs | 2.27 ft | 186.05 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near West Blocton Al
USGS 02423647 |
111 cfs | 2.06 ft | 8.82 | |||||
|
Cahaba River At Centreville Al
USGS 02424000 |
293 cfs | 0.86 ft | 13.57 | |||||
|
Cahaba River Near Marion Junction Al
USGS 02425000 |
617 cfs | 2.36 ft | 0.65 |
Seasonal Discharge Comparison
Maximum Streamflow Discharge
Streamflow Elevation Profile
The Cahaba River is the longest substantially free-flowing river in Alabama and is among the most scenic and biologically diverse rivers in the United States. It is a major tributary of the Alabama River and part of the larger Mobile River basin. With headwaters near Birmingham, the Cahaba flows southwest, then at Heiberger turns southeast and joins the Alabama River at the ghost town and former Alabama capital of Cahaba in Dallas County. Entirely within central Alabama, the Cahaba River is 194 miles (312 km) long and drains an area of 1,870 square miles (4,800 km2).