Rock Island District / Missions / Flood Risk Management / UMRS Hydraulic Model Update

Upper Mississippi River System Hydraulic Model Update

A flood risk management existing conditions hydraulic model is a tool which can be used to more accurately evaluate and communicate flood risks, as well as explore mitigation strategies to reduce future risk. It can also help provide better predictability and more consistent flood risk management.

Development of a standardized and seamless flood risk management hydraulic model for the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS) is an essential part of understanding the risks that currently exist to the river communities. It is a critical first step to support development of a systemic flood risk management strategy.

As part of this effort, the Corps of Engineers developed a new, updated hydraulic model for the Upper Mississippi River System, including the Illinois Waterway. This collaborative effort involved a variety of state and federal agencies, is facilitated by the Corps of Engineers Rock Island, St. Louis and St. Paul districts and uses the Hydrologic Engineering Center's River Analysis System (HEC-RAS).

Click on the map to the right to see a larger view of the project phases.


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A view of the Illinois River at Peoria, Illinois, during the 2013 flood event using the new Upper Mississippi River System Hydraulic Model in the Hydrologic Engineering Center’s River Analysis System (HEC-RAS).

Project Status

All phases of the upper Mississippi River System Hydraulic Model are complete and available for public use. Phase I of the Model was completed in January 2018. It covers 320 river miles of the Mississippi River from Lock and Dam 19 at Keokuk, Iowa, (River Mile 364) to Thebes, Illinois, (River Mile 44). Phases II and IV were completed in 2020 and cover a total of 496 river miles. Phase II stretches from Lock and Dam 10 at Guttenberg, Iowa, (River Mile 615) to Lock and Dam 19 at Keokuk, Iowa, (River Mile 364) and Phase IV covers the area from Anoka, Minnesota, (River Mile 860) to Lock and Dam 10 at Guttenberg, Iowa, (River Mile 615). The final phase. Phase III of the project, which includes 290 miles of the Illinois Waterway, was completed in March of 2022.

UMR Hydraulic Model Update Phases Map


(Click image to view full size)

HEC-RAS modeling elements can be combined with other mapping tools to increase understanding of how water at various stages of flooding can impact river communities. The image above of Peoria, Illinois, was created by combining layers from the new hydraulic model (shown in the animation to the left) with 3D mapping capabilities from Google Earth.

Project Reports

Questions & Answers

Maps

Related Projects

For More Information

For more information about the Hydraulic Model update or to request a copy of the Phase I, II, III or IV file, contact the Rock Island District at 309-794-5729 or email cemvr-cc@usace.army.mil. Files will be transferred to the requesting party via an online file exchange application.