Yukon River at Dawson
The live level and flow of the Yukon River at Dawson, with the official flood-warning link — the break-up ice-jam watch.
Loading tool…
The live level and flow of the Yukon River at Dawson, with the official flood-warning link — the break-up ice-jam watch.
The live level and flow of the Yukon River at Dawson, straight from the Water Survey of Canada gauge in town. These numbers describe the river. They are not a flood warning — at break-up the danger comes from ice jams, and the official flood call comes from Yukon's Emergency Measures Organization (linked below).
4.17 m
High in its recent range. Steady over the past few days. Measured 18 Jun, 9:10.
The official flood warning is at Yukon Emergency Measures Organization (EMO)
These numbers describe the river. They are not a flood warning — the official flood-vigilance level for this station is set by Yukon Emergency Measures Organization (EMO).
The gauge readings on this page describe the river. The flood warnings and evacuation alerts — who should leave and when — come from the Yukon government and the Emergency Measures Organization, not from a number on this page. During spring break-up, follow EMO and the Yukon Flood Hub for the official call.
Dawson's most consequential flooding comes in spring when the river ice breaks up and jams downstream, backing water up fast. In May 2023 an ice jam near Rock Creek and Henderson Corner pushed water up close to four feet in about two hours overnight for some homes — residents went to bed with the water well away and woke to it at the doorstep. A reading that looks ordinary can still turn dangerous within hours once the ice moves, which is why the official warning, not the gauge, is the thing to watch in break-up season.
During the 2023 break-up, about 20 properties along Rock Creek Road were evacuated and more than 80 people registered with the Yukon government's emergency support services. The evacuation was a recommendation rather than an order, and Henderson Corner and the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in farm were also threatened. Low-lying areas — Rock Creek, Henderson Corner and West Dawson — are the ones that go under first.
Dawson sits at the confluence of the Klondike and the Yukon. This gauge reads the Yukon River at Dawson (station 09EB001). The Klondike is gauged separately upstream — at Rock Creek (09EA006) and above Bonanza Creek (09EA003) — and in break-ups like 2023 it was the Klondike's ice jams that drove the evacuations, so a calm Yukon reading here is not the whole picture.
Checked 18 Jun, 10:11. River data from the Water Survey of Canada (Environment and Climate Change Canada), under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Real-time readings are provisional and unvalidated, and may later be revised.