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
Sweetwater River
was last observed at
280
cfs, and is expected to yield approximately
555
acre-ft of water today; about 178%
of normal.
River levels are high.
Average streamflow for this time of year is
157 cfs,
with recent peaks last observed
on
2017-05-19 when daily discharge volume was observed at
2,720 cfs.
Maximum discharge along the river is currently at the
Sweetwater River Near Alcova
reporting a streamflow rate of 27.1 cfs.
However, the streamgauge with the highest stage along the river is the
Sweetwater R Nr Descanso Ca
with a gauge stage of 3.41 ft.
This river is monitored from 4 different streamgauging stations along the Sweetwater River, the highest being situated at an altitude of 6,593 ft, the
Sweetwater River Near Sweetwater Station.
River Details
| Last Updated | 2025-12-01 |
| Discharge Volume | 555 ACRE-FT |
| Streamflow |
280.0 cfs
-8.7 cfs (-3.01%) |
| Percent of Normal | 178.15% |
| Maximum |
2,720.0 cfs
2017-05-19 |
| Seasonal Avg | 157 cfs |
River Streamflow Levels
| Streamgauge | Streamflow | Gauge Stage | 24hr Change (%) | % Normal | Minimum (cfs) | Maximum (cfs) | Air Temp | Elevation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Sweetwater River Near Sweetwater Station
USGS 06638090 |
21 cfs | 1.73 ft | -24.19 | |||||
|
Sweetwater River Near Alcova
USGS 06639000 |
27 cfs | 1.77 ft | -6.23 | |||||
|
Sweetwater R Nr Descanso Ca
USGS 11015000 |
0 cfs | 3.41 ft | None | |||||
|
Sweetwater R A Dehesa Ca
USGS 11016200 |
0 cfs | 2.91 ft | None |
Seasonal Discharge Comparison
Maximum Streamflow Discharge
Streamflow Elevation Profile
The Sweetwater River is a 55-mile (89 km) long stream in San Diego County, California.
From its headwaters high in the Cuyamaca Mountains, the river flows generally southwest, first through rugged hinterlands but then into the urban areas surrounding its mouth at San Diego Bay. Its drainage basin covers more than 230 square miles (600 km2), all of it within San Diego County. Towns on the river include Descanso, La Presa and Chula Vista.
The term "Sweetwater" is a name often given to freshwater which tastes good in regions where much of the water is bitter to the taste. The Spanish called the river "Agua Dulce", a name they applied to good clear water anywhere they lived.
Jennings Lake
Barrett Lake (San Diego City)
Barrett Lake