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0.42

Appley Bridge

Douglas
Ribble Douglas and Crossens catchment • Appley Bridge • Lancashire • ID: 700309 • Level
(1h ago) • 4 readings/hr • 151 views

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Current Level
0.418 m
▬ Steady
24h Max
0.424 m
24h Min
0.408 m
Typical Range
0.37 - 3.35
m
Highest Recorded
2.83 m
26 Dec 2015
Since Jun 2005
Current level is 15% of this
🚽 Sewage overflows nearby

Recent Water Levels

🌍 floodradar.co.uk
1 day

Recent Readings

Rising · +0.9 cm over 6h
08 Oct 01:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.418 m
08 Oct 01:15 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.420 m
08 Oct 01:00 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.419 m
08 Oct 00:45 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.418 m
08 Oct 00:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.417 m
08 Oct 00:15 ▲ +0.2 cm 0.419 m
08 Oct 00:00 ▲ +0.2 cm 0.417 m
07 Oct 23:45 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.415 m
07 Oct 23:30 ▲ +0.5 cm 0.416 m
07 Oct 22:30 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.411 m
07 Oct 22:15 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.412 m
07 Oct 22:00 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.411 m
07 Oct 21:45 ▲ +0.4 cm 0.412 m
07 Oct 21:30 ▬ steady 0.408 m
07 Oct 21:15 ▬ steady 0.408 m
07 Oct 21:00 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.408 m
07 Oct 20:45 ▬ steady 0.409 m
07 Oct 20:30 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.409 m
07 Oct 20:15 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.410 m
07 Oct 20:00 0.409 m

Station Details

  • Monitoring Station: Appley Bridge
  • Watercourse: River Douglas
  • Nearest Town: Appley Bridge
  • County: Lancashire
  • Coordinates: 53°34'38"N 2°43'17"W (53.577223, -2.721440)
  • Open in: Google Maps · Apple Maps (opens your maps app)
  • Date Opened: 1 Jan 2004
  • Status: Active
  • Station Type: River level station
Technical details: references, datum, range, flow archive
  • Station Reference: 700309
  • RLOI id: 5006 (the EA's check-for-flooding station id)
  • EA Gauge ID: 700309-level-stage-i-15_min-m
  • Parameter: Level
  • Unit: m
  • Typical rise rate: 3 cm/hr (p95 sustained over 90 days)
  • Typical data delay: ~22 min (measured reading→publication lag)
  • Tidal: No
  • Lock / structure: No
  • Catchment Area: Ribble Douglas and Crossens
  • Typical Range: 0.374 – 3.348 m
  • EA Cross-check: 0.42 m (EA at 8 Oct 01:45)

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

Nearby

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.

25 storm overflows are traced upstream of this gauge, the nearest 3.2 km away along the river. 0 report discharging now, 24 report not discharging, and for 1 the monitor is offline or has not reported, so their status is not known.

💧
United Utilities · into River Douglas · 3.2 km upstream along the river
24 spills · 58 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Dean Brook Trid Of R Douglas · 3.5 km upstream along the river
66 spills · 210 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into The River Douglas · 6.0 km upstream along the river
1 spill · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into River Douglas Via Sws · 6.1 km upstream along the river
34 spills · 73 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
Reaches the river through a sewer, so where it enters is approximate.
💧
United Utilities · into River Douglas Via Sws · 6.1 km upstream along the river
11 spills · 9 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
Reaches the river through a sewer, so where it enters is approximate.
💧
United Utilities · into Culverted Trib. River Douglas · 6.1 km upstream along the river
28 spills · 25 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Billy Pit Brook Lpool Canal · 6.3 km upstream along the river
2 spills · 9 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Close Brook Trib Of R Douglas · 7.5 km upstream along the river
4 spills · 23 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

17 more further upstream, up to 14.7 km away along the river.

Nearby, connection not known

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

💧
United Utilities · into Trib Of Pendleton Brook By Sws · 2.5 km away in a straight line · reaches the river through a sewer or culvert
29 spills · 44 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Mill Brook · 2.7 km away in a straight line · its water cannot be followed on the map
14 spills · 46 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Mill Brook · 2.9 km away in a straight line · its water cannot be followed on the map
62 spills · 155 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Mill Brook · 2.9 km away in a straight line · its water cannot be followed on the map
53 spills · 65 hours in 2025
Status unknown — the live feed has not updated for 7 d 15 h
💧
United Utilities · into Mill Brook · 2.9 km away in a straight line · its water cannot be followed on the map
15 spills · 113 hours in 2025
No live feed for this overflow
💧
United Utilities · into Ackhurst Brook Trib R Douglas · 3.2 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
75 spills · 242 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Dean Brook Trib Of R Douglas · 3.7 km away in a straight line · no mapped watercourse close enough to be sure
70 spills · 304 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

6 other overflows within 6 km are downstream of this gauge or on another branch of the river network, so they are not listed.

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

This gauge rarely reaches its typical high of 3.35 m: 0 days since 2017. This year so far: 0 days.

2026 0 days so far
2025 0 days
2024 0 days
2023 0 days
2022 0 days
2021 0 days
2020 0 days
2019 0 days
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 2007 for the 13 flood areas linked to this gauge (nearest 0.2 km away).

2severe warnings 28flood warnings 107flood alerts

Most recent flood warning: 20 Sep 2025 — Rainford Brook at Rainford North

Year by year
YearSevereWarningsAlerts
2026 0 0 2
2025 0 4 4
2024 0 2 15
2023 0 2 9
2022 0 0 4
2021 0 4 8
2020 0 0 13
2019 0 0 10
2018 0 0 1
2017 0 0 2
2016 0 0 6
2015 2 9 7
2014 0 0 2
2013 0 0 2
2012 0 7 12
2011 0 0 2
2010 0 0 1
2008 0 0 5
2007 0 0 2

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 Appley Bridge flood history.

Flood areas linked to this gauge

Flood warnings and alerts are issued for whole areas. These are the 13 areas linked to this gauge, nearest first.

Show 5 more

Frequently asked questions

Is the River Douglas at Appley Bridge flooding today?

The current level is 0.42m, which is within the typical range of 0.37 to 3.35m. Flooding is unlikely at this level.

Is the river level rising or falling at Appley Bridge?

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.

Why is the level slowly falling?

When little or no rain has fallen for a while, a river level gradually drops as the water stored in the ground and soil drains away with nothing to replace it. This is called baseflow recession and is normal in dry spells. Only about 8.1mm of rain has fallen nearby in the last 7 days, so the flow is being sustained mainly by groundwater. A gentle decline like this is expected and is not a sign of a problem — downstream gauges often recede a little faster than headwaters further upstream, and levels recover once rain returns.

What is a normal level for the River Douglas at Appley Bridge?

The typical range at this station is 0.37m to 3.35m, based on Environment Agency historical data. Levels above 3.35m 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:

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