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0.11

Mardock

Ash
Ash (Herts) catchment • Wareside • Hertfordshire • ID: 5080TH • Level
(24m ago) • 4 readings/hr • 161 views

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Current Level
0.105 mASD
▬ Steady
24h Max
0.105 mASD
24h Min
0.104 mASD
Typical Range
0.10 - 0.80
mASD
Highest Recorded
1.61 mASD
EA official record
1.43 in our data (since Oct 1981)
Current level is 7% of this
🚽 Sewage overflows nearby

Recent Water Levels

🌍 floodradar.co.uk
1 day

Recent Readings

Steady over 6h
10 Oct 01:30 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
10 Oct 01:15 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
10 Oct 01:00 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
10 Oct 00:45 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
10 Oct 00:30 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
10 Oct 00:15 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
10 Oct 00:00 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 23:45 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 23:30 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 22:30 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 22:15 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 22:00 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 21:45 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 21:30 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 21:15 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 21:00 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 20:45 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 20:30 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 20:15 ▬ steady 0.105 mASD
09 Oct 20:00 0.105 mASD

Station Details

  • Monitoring Station: Mardock
  • Watercourse: River Ash
  • Nearest Town: Wareside
  • County: Hertfordshire
  • Coordinates: 51°48'53"N 0°1'13"E (51.814817, 0.020302)
  • Open in: Google Maps · Apple Maps (opens your maps app)
  • Date Opened: 1 Jan 1981
  • Status: Active
  • Station Type: River level station
Technical details: references, datum, range, flow archive
  • Station Reference: 5080TH
  • RLOI id: 7347 (the EA's check-for-flooding station id)
  • EA Gauge ID: 5080TH-level-stage-i-15_min-mASD
  • Parameter: Level
  • Unit: mASD
  • Typical data delay: ~22 min (measured reading→publication lag)
  • Tidal: No
  • Lock / structure: No
  • Catchment Area: Ash (Herts)
  • Typical Range: 0.095 – 0.800 mASD
  • Drainage Area: 79 km² upstream of this gauge
  • Flow Data: Daily mean flow (m³/s) to 8 Oct (2 days behind — the EA publishes each day's mean a day or two after it ends; unchecked, provisional) via EA Hydrology
  • EA Cross-check: 0.11 mASD (EA at 10 Oct 01:15)
  • Flow Archive: National River Flow Archive ↗

Geographic coordinates may reflect the access point for the gauge, and not the precise location in the watercourse that it is taking readings from.

Nearby Stations

Gauges connected to this river, and others nearby. A distance “by river” follows the river on the map; any other is in a straight line.

Connected upstream

Connected downstream

Same river system, separate branch

Distances by river: OS Open Rivers. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

💧 Storm overflows upstream of this gauge

Storm overflows whose water reaches this gauge on the mapped river network, nearest first by distance along the river. The status is each water company's monitor: it says whether an overflow is discharging, not how much or what it contains.

2 storm overflows are traced upstream of this gauge, the nearest 3.8 km away along the river. 0 report discharging now, 2 report not discharging.

💧
Thames Water · into The River Ash · 3.8 km upstream along the river
11 spills · 77 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Thames Water · into River Ash · 6.2 km upstream along the river
4 spills · 41 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

Nearby, connection not known

Within 6 km in a straight line, but the river map cannot say whether their water passes this gauge.

💧
Thames Water · into Toll House Stream · 4.4 km away in a straight line · no mapped watercourse close enough to be sure
5 spills · 38 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

These are the water companies' monitor statuses; a spill does not by itself explain a change in the gauge level. River connections and distances are traced on OS Open Rivers (edition 2026-04), which leaves out many small channels. Explore the sewage map →

Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

Rainfall & Weather

Loading rainfall and weather data...

How often this river runs high

In a typical year this gauge reaches its typical high of 0.80 m on about 1 day. This year so far: 0 days.

2026 0 days so far
2025 1 day
2024 4 days
2023 1 day
2022 0 days
2021 4 days
2020 0 days
2019 1 day
2018 0 days
2017 0 days

Counted from each day's highest reading. Days with missing or implausible readings are left out.

Flood history near this gauge

Official Environment Agency warnings issued since 2009 for the 12 flood areas linked to this gauge (nearest 2.8 km away).

13flood warnings 78flood alerts

Most recent flood warning: 14 Jan 2021 — River Stort at Harlow

Year by year
YearWarningsAlerts
2026 0 4
2025 0 3
2024 0 13
2023 0 4
2021 1 7
2020 0 7
2019 0 2
2017 0 4
2016 0 5
2015 0 1
2014 6 9
2013 0 4
2012 4 7
2011 0 3
2010 1 1
2009 1 4

Warnings apply to a whole flood area, not necessarily this exact spot. Years before 2006 aren't covered by the EA's historic record. See also the Wareside flood history.

Flood areas linked to this gauge

Flood warnings and alerts are issued for whole areas. These are the 12 areas linked to this gauge, nearest first.

Show 4 more

Catchment Character

🌊 Mixed response A balance of quick runoff and slower groundwater baseflow.

Your catchment is all the land that drains rainfall into the river above this gauge. Its character — how steep, wet, wooded, urban or chalky that land is — decides how fast rain here turns into a rising river. A steep, bare or clay catchment is “flashy” (rises and falls quickly, floods easily); a flat, chalk or well-wooded one is slow and steady. The tiles below put numbers to that; the flow-duration curve reads left-to-right from the river’s typical high flows (Q5) down to its low flows (Q95) — a steep curve means a flashy river.

The physical character of the land that drains to this gauge, and how it shapes its flood response — from the National River Flow Archive (UKCEH).

Baseflow Index
0.51
mixed response
Avg Annual Rainfall
652 mm/yr
1991–2020 · +4% since 1941–70
Urban Extent
1.4%
largely rural
Median Annual Flood
6.74 m³/s
QMED — typical yearly peak flow
Highest Daily Mean Flow
11.30 m³/s
21 Oct 2001 · daily mean, not the instantaneous peak
Flow-Duration Curve
mean 0.2911.050.1330.0405% (high)% of days exceeded95% (low)
Daily flow (m³/s) exceeded each % of the time — a steep curve is flashy, a flat one is steady. Q5 high · Q50 median · Q95 low.
Land Cover (2023)
Woodland 6%Grassland 34%Arable 56%Urban 4%
Arable 72% → 56% since 1990

Flow affected by: groundwater abstraction, industrial / agricultural abstraction.

Photos

Gauging-station photographs from the National River Flow Archive (UKCEH).

Photos © NRFA / UKCEH & the measuring authority — shown at web resolution. Full gallery on the NRFA ↗

About this gauge

Flat V weir that is located in the lower Ash catchment.

More detail

The catchment

Solid geology of Upper Chalk extensively overlain by boulder clay, glacial sands & gravel and alluvium in the valleys. Rural catchment in character.

The station

Flat V weir (1:10 cross-slope) 3.9m wide, constructed in 1979. The current station replaced the original hump flume weir that was built in 1939. The old station was not good due to the obstruction caused by the old gate at the mill bypass channel. It was insensitive, subject to bypassing and was inaccurate at low flows. Hence discharges was assessed at the d/s station at Easneye (38005).

How it measures flow

No rating available for original hump flume weir. Remains modular and is virtually full range. Rating is valid from 1981 - theoretical standard Flat V calculation, extended in January 2012, using modelled flow to account for stages 0.9mASD to 3mASD. Peak flow rating is reasonably accurate. Some bypassing is known to occur at extreme flows. One peak flow rating across period of record which takes account of bypassing.

Flow regime

Baseflow dominated regime but significant runoff generated from the clays in the headwaters. U/s lake storage, sluice activity and gw abstractions for industry/agriculture have a minor effect on flows.

The flow record

Full period of record peak flow data reviewed and released in August 2024 (WINFAP Files v13).

Descriptions from the National River Flow Archive (UKCEH). NRFA station record ↗

Gauge Details

How this gauging station is built and how long it has measured (NRFA / UKCEH).

Gauge type
Flat-V weir
Operating since
1939
Station datum
36.4 mAOD
Flow record
1980–2024 · 44 yrs · 100% complete
Peak-flow record
since 1980
Hydrometric area
38
Measured by
Environment Agency

Frequently asked questions

Is the River Ash at Mardock flooding today?

The current level is 0.11m, which is within the typical range of 0.10 to 0.80m. Flooding is unlikely at this level.

Is the river level rising or falling at Mardock?

Based on the most recent readings, the level is currently steady. The chart above shows the last 12 hours of measurements by default (up to 7 days), updated roughly every 15 minutes.

What is a normal level for the River Ash at Mardock?

The typical range at this station is 0.10m to 0.80m, based on Environment Agency historical data. Levels above 0.80m are higher than usually seen and may indicate a flood risk.

How often is this river level data updated?

Readings are supplied by the Environment Agency gauge. FloodRadar checks for updates roughly every 15 minutes; the timestamp above shows how recent the latest available reading is.

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📮 Flood risk by postcode near this gauge

Postcodes within 5 km with properties in the Environment Agency’s rivers-and-sea flood-risk bands:

Check any UK postcode’s flood risk →

🏠 Buying or renting around here? Get the Property Flood-Risk Report for any English postcode — official risk band, recorded floods, warning history, river behaviour and nearby storm overflows. £19 one-off. Learn more →