UNITED STATES EPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR- ., / GEOLOGICAL SURVEY FLOODS IN FLORIDA MAGNITUDE AND FREQUENCY By R.W. Pride Prepared in cooperation with Florida State Road Department Open-file report 1958 MAR 2 CONTENTS Page Introduction. ........................................... 1 Acknowledgements ....................................... 1 Description of the area ..................................... 1 Topography ......................................... 2 Coastal Lowlands ..................................... 2 Central Highlands ..................................... 2 Tallahassee Hills ..................................... 2 Marianna Lowlands .................................... 2 Western Highlands. .................................... 3 Drainage basins ....................................... 3 St. Marys River. ......_.............................. 3 St. Johns River ...................................... 3 Lake Okeechobee and the everglades. ............................ 3 Peace River ....................................... 3 Withlacoochee River. ................................... 3 Suwannee River ...................................... 3 Ochlockonee River. .................................... 5 Apalachicola River .................................... 5 Choctawhatchee, Yellow, Blackwater, Escambia, and Perdido Rivers. ............. 5 Climate. .......................................... 5 Flood records ......................................... 6 Method of flood-frequency analysis ................................. 9 Flood frequency at a gaging station ................................ 9 The flood-frequency graph .................................. 10 Limitations of flood-frequency graphs ............................. 10 Flood frequency by combining records .............................. 11 Combining records by geometric similarity, of frequency graphs. ................. 11 Computation of mean annual floods ................................ 12 Test for geometric similarity .... ............................. 12 Regional frequency graph ................................... 12 Combining records by similarity of mean annual floods ....................... 12 Factors influencing the mean annual flood. ........................... 13 Hydrologic areas. ...................................... 13 Flood frequency in Florida ..................................... 13 Flood regions of Florida. .................................... 13 Delineation of flood regions .................................. 14 Region A ......................................... 14 Region B ......................................... 14 Southern Florida ..................................... 16 Hydrologic areas of Florida ......................... .......... 16 Delineation of hydrologic areas ................................ 18 Area 1 .......................................... 18 Areas 2A and 2B ..................................... 18 Area 3 .......................................... 18 Area 4 .......................................... 19 Area 5 .......................................... 20 Area 6 .......................................... 21 Area 7 . ........................................... 21 Frequency of annual flood stages ................................. 21 St. Johns River ....................................... 22 Kissimmee River ...................................... 22 Summary of flood-frequency relationships ............................. 23 Maximum floods known. ........... ^ .......................... 25 Gaging station records ....................................... 37 Satilla River basin ....................................... 38 Satilla River near Waycross, Ga. ............................... 38 Satilla River at Atkinson, Ga. ................................. 38 St. Marys River basin. ... .................................. 39 North Prong St. Marys River at Moniac, Ga. .......................... 39 St. Marys River near Macclenny, Fla ............................. 40 St. Johns River basin ...................................... 40 St. Johns River headwaters near Vero Beach. Fla. ....................... 40 St. Johns River headwaters near Kenansville, Fla ........................ 41 St. Johns River near Melbourne, Fla. ............................. 41 Lake Washington near Eau Gallic, Fla ............................. 42 Lake Poinsett near Cocoa, Fla. ................................ 42 St. Johns River near Christmas, Fla . ............................ 43 Econlockhatchee River near Chuluota, Fla ........................... 44 St. Johns River above Lake Harney, near Geneva, Fla. ..................... 44 St. Johns River at Osceola, Fla ................................ 45 JessupT.ake Outlet near Sanford. Fla ............................. 46 St. Johns River above Lake Monroe, near Sanford, Fla ..................... 46 St. Johns River near Sanford, Fla ............................... 47 III IV CONTENTS Page Gaging station records Continued St. Johns River basin Continued Wekiva River near Sanford. Fla. ................................ 48 St. Johns River near De Land, Fla ............................... 49 Lake Apopka at Winter Garden, Fla ............................... 50 Apopka-Beauclair Canal near Astatula. Fla. ........................... 50 Lake Dora at Mount Dora, Fla ................................. 51 Dead River near Tavares, Fla . '. ............................... 52 Lake Minnehaha at Clermont, Fla. ............................... 52 Palatlakaha Creek near Mascotte, Fla. ............................. 53 Haines Creek at Lisbon, Fla .................................. 53 Lake Weir at Oklawaha, Fla .................................. 54 Oklawaha River at Moss Bluff, Fla ............................... 54 Oklawaha River near Ocala, Fla. ................................ 55 Silver Springs near Ocala, Fla ................................. 56 Oklawaha River near Conner, Fla. ............................... 57 Oklawaha River at Eureka, Fla ................................. 57 Newnans Lake near Gainesville, Fla. ........................ 58 Orange Lake near Boardman, Fla. ............................... 59 Orange Lake Outlet near Citra, Fla ............................... 59 Lochloosa Lake at Lochloosa, Fla. ............................... 60 Lochloosa Lake Outlet near Lochloosa, Fla ........................... 61 Orange Creek at Orange Springs, Fla .............................. 61 Oklawaha River near Orange Springs, Fla ............................ 62 Oklawaha River at Riverside Landing near Orange Springs. Fla .................. 63 South Fork Black Creek near Penny Farms, Fla ......................... 63 North Fork Black Creek near Middleburg, Fla .......................... 64 Moultrie Creek basin. ....... ............................... 64 Moultrie Creek near St. Augustine, Fla ............................. 64 Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades. ............................... 65 Lake Okeechobee, Fla ..................................... 65 Fisheating Creek at Palmdale. Fla ............................... 66 Indian Prairie Canal near Okeechobee, Fla. ........................... 66 Alligator Lake near Ashton, Fla . ............................... 67 Hart Lake near Narcoossee, Fla . ............................... 68 East Tohopekaliga Lake at St. Cloud, Fla ............................ 68 Lake Tohopekaliga at Kissimmee, Fla .............................. 69 Cypress Lake near St. Cloud, Fla. ............................... 69 Lake Butler at Windermere, Fla ................................ 70 Cypress Creek at Vineland, Fla. ................................ 70 Reedy Creek near Loughman, Fla. ............................... 71 Lake Hatchineha near Haines City, Fla .............................. 72 Catfish Creek near Lake Wales, Fla. .............................. 72 Lake Kissimmee near Lake Wales, Fla ............................. 73 Weohyakapka-Rosalie Canal nr. Lake Wales, Fla.................... i .... 73 Kissimmee River below Lake Kissimmee, Fla .......................... 74 Kissimmee River at Fort Kissimmee, Fla ............................ 74 Reedy Lake Outlet near Frostproof, Fla . ............................ 75 Lake Arbuckle near Avon Park, Fla. .............................. 76 Arbuckle Creek near De Soto City, Fla ............................. 76 Josephine Creek near De Soto City, Fla ............................. 77 Lake Istokpoga near De Soto City, Fla. ............................. 78 Istokpoga Canal near Cornwell, Fla. ............................. 78 Kissimmee River near Cornwell, Fla . ............................. 79 Kissimmee River near Okeechobee, Fla ............................. 80 St. Lucie Canal at Lake Okeechobee, Fla ............................ 81 West Palm Beach Canal at Canal Point. Fla ........................... 82 West Palm Beach Canal at West Palm Beach, Fla. ........................ 83 Hillsboro Canal at Belle Glade, Fla. .............................. 84 Hillsboro Canal at Shawano Plantation, Fla ........................... 85 Hillsboro Canal near Deerfield Beach, Fla. ........................... 86 North New River Canal at South Bay, Fla ............................ 87 North New River Canal at 26-mile bend, near Fort Lauderdale, Fla ................ 88 North New River Canal near Fort Lauderdale, Fla ........................ 89 Miami Canal at Pennsuco, near Miami, Fla ........................... 90 Miami Canal at water plant, Hialeah, Fla ............................ 91 Tamiami Canal outlets, Miami to Monroe. Fla .......................... 91