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Water Level Easing
Easing — down from 0.42 at 14:15, now 0.38
0.38

Longford

Sowe
Warwickshire Avon catchment • West Midlands • ID: 2209 • Level
(31m ago) • 4 readings/hr • 150 views

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⤴ Unusual rise — FloodRadar+Top 1% rise rate for this gauge.
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Not an emergency service — if in danger call 999. Alerts rely on EA/SEPA/NRW data and are best-efforts. Terms

Current Level
0.378 mASD
▼ Easing
24h Max
0.426 mASD
24h Min
0.364 mASD
Typical Range
0.11 - 3.04
mASD
Highest Recorded
1.73 mASD
25 Nov 2012
Since Jan 2009
Current level is 22% of this
🚽 Sewage overflows nearby

Recent Water Levels

🌍 floodradar.co.uk
1 day

Recent Readings

Falling · -4 cm over 5h
10 Oct 19:45 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.378 mASD
10 Oct 19:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.379 mASD
10 Oct 19:15 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.381 mASD
10 Oct 19:00 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.382 mASD
10 Oct 18:45 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.384 mASD
10 Oct 18:30 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.386 mASD
10 Oct 18:15 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.387 mASD
10 Oct 17:45 ▼ -0.3 cm 0.391 mASD
10 Oct 17:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.394 mASD
10 Oct 17:15 ▼ -0.3 cm 0.396 mASD
10 Oct 17:00 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.399 mASD
10 Oct 16:45 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.401 mASD
10 Oct 16:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.403 mASD
10 Oct 16:15 ▼ -0.3 cm 0.405 mASD
10 Oct 16:00 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.408 mASD
10 Oct 15:45 ▼ -0.3 cm 0.410 mASD
10 Oct 15:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.413 mASD
10 Oct 15:15 ▬ steady 0.415 mASD
10 Oct 15:00 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.415 mASD
10 Oct 14:45 0.414 mASD

Station Details

  • Monitoring Station: Longford
  • Watercourse: River Sowe
  • County: West Midlands
  • Nearest reservoir: Draycote (17.7 km) · 70.8% full (as of 5 Oct 2026)
  • Coordinates: 52°26'48"N 1°29'15"W (52.446651, -1.487391)
  • Open in: Google Maps · Apple Maps (opens your maps app)
  • Date Opened: 21 Jan 2009
  • Status: Active
  • Station Type: River level station
Technical details: references, datum, range, flow archive
  • Station Reference: 2209
  • RLOI id: 9094 (the EA's check-for-flooding station id)
  • EA Gauge ID: 2209-level-stage-i-15_min-mASD
  • Parameter: Level
  • Unit: mASD
  • Typical rise rate: 8 cm/hr (p95 sustained over 90 days)
  • Typical data delay: ~22 min (measured reading→publication lag)
  • Tidal: No
  • Lock / structure: No
  • Catchment Area: Warwickshire Avon
  • Typical Range: 0.109 – 3.040 mASD
  • EA Cross-check: 0.38 mASD (EA at 10 Oct 19:45)

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 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

None of the storm overflows FloodRadar holds is traced upstream of this gauge on the mapped river network. That is not the same as none: the map leaves out many small streams and culverts, so an overflow it cannot place may still drain here, and not every company publishes every overflow. Those nearby are listed below.

Nearby, connection not known

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

💧
Severn Trent Water · into River Sowe · 1.1 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Chaddesden Brook · 1.7 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
2 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Wem Brook · 4.5 km away in a straight line · its water cannot be followed on the map
18 spills · 122 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Wem Brook · 4.7 km away in a straight line · not connected to this gauge on the river map
13 spills · 132 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Wem Brook · 4.7 km away in a straight line · not connected to this gauge on the river map
10 spills · 55 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Wem Brook (River Anker) · 4.7 km away in a straight line · not connected to this gauge on the river map
6 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Tributary Of Wem Brook · 4.8 km away in a straight line · no mapped watercourse close enough to be sure
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Coventry Canal · 5.0 km away in a straight line · its water cannot be followed on the map
8 spills · 1 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

1 more within 6 km whose connection is not known.

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 3.04 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 2014 for the 14 flood areas linked to this gauge (nearest 0.1 km away).

25flood warnings 63flood alerts

Most recent flood warning: 28 Feb 2026 — River Anker at Weddington

Year by year
YearWarningsAlerts
2026 6 8
2025 7 6
2024 3 11
2023 1 7
2022 1 2
2021 0 5
2020 1 6
2019 4 9
2018 0 3
2017 0 1
2016 2 4
2014 0 1

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

Flood areas linked to this gauge

Flood warnings and alerts are issued for whole areas. These are the 14 areas linked to this gauge, nearest first.

Show 6 more

Frequently asked questions

Is the River Sowe at Longford flooding today?

The current level is 0.38m, which is within the typical range of 0.11 to 3.04m. Flooding is unlikely at this level.

Is the river level rising or falling at Longford?

Based on the most recent readings, the level is currently falling slightly. 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 8.0mm 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 Sowe at Longford?

The typical range at this station is 0.11m to 3.04m, based on Environment Agency historical data. Levels above 3.04m 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 →