Rhode Island Flood History
Flood Events from 1950 to 2004 

Location 

Date 

Type 

Property Damage 

Precip Amount 

Comments 

Statewide  3/30/93 – 4/2/93  Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  N/A  Blackstone crested at 1 foot below flood stage, flooding from Pawtuxet River onto Woodbury Ave, Wellington and Marine Rd in Cranston, flooding in Natic section of West Warwick, flooding in Charlestown from Pawcatuck River 
Statewide  1/28/1996 Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  2”  Heavy winds & rainfall combined with low temps and snow melt 
Statewide  4/17/1996 Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  N/A  Heavy rains combined with snow melt , ground saturated. Blackstone crested above one foot flood stage, Paxtuxet crested above flood stage 
Statewide  10/21/1996 Riverine & urban flooding  N/A  N/A  Slow moving Nor’easter, brought heavy rain and winds. Blackstone crested .3 foot above flood stage 
Newport Tiverton, Portsmouth, Barrington, Providence  1/10/1997 Coastal storm surge  N/A  N/A  High moon tides and heavy winds created 2-4’ storm surge levels. Water came within one foot of topping the hurricane barrier, some coastal roads flooded out in other communities 
Statewide  8/29/1997 Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  3 – 6”  Slow moving front, heavy rain fell within 2 hours 
Statewide  1/24/1998 Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  3.5” in 12 hours  Pocassett River overflow banks by 2 feet 
Central and southeast  2/18/1998 Dam breech, riverine flooding  $400,000 3.5” in 12 hours  Dam break in S.Kingstown, extensive basement flooding in SE, Maidford River overflowed banks in Middletown 
Statewide  3/10/1998 Riverine & urban flooding  $50,000 2 – 4 “ in 30 hours  flooding, basement flooding, and river flooding, Blackstone flooded over 3 feet in Woonsocket and Cumberland 
Statewide  6/13/1998 Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  7 – 8 “  Slow moving storm with heavy rains, Ponaganset Pond flooded over in Glocester & Foster, Woonasquatucket hit flood stage in N. Providence, Pawtuxet went beyond flood stage in Warwick, Blackstone hit flood stage 
Statewide  6/30/1998 Riverine & urban flooding  N/A  3-6” in 8 hours  Louquisset River flooded out of banks, Woonasquatucket River flooded banks in Smithfield and N. Providence, Ponganset flooded and Pawtuxet River flooded 
Johnston  8/26/1999 Riverine flooding  N/A  4-6” in 2 hours  Series of thunderstorms heavy rains, Pocassett River overflowed, severe urban street flooding, bridge over Pocassett damaged 
Statewide  9/10/1999 Riverine flooding  N/A  5-7” rain  Woonasquatucket River out of banks 
Statewide  9/16/1999 Coastal, riverine & urban flooding  N/A  Up to 8”  Pawtuxet River rose out of banks in Cranston and Warwick 
Cranston  4/22/2000 Riverine & urban flooding  N/A  3” in  Pawtuxet River flooding in Cranston, some roads covered by 12 inches of water 
6 – 12 hours 
Cranston  3/22/2001 Riverine & urban flooding  $3 million affecting 1,400 homes and 147 businesses  N/A  Heavy rainfall combined with melting snow. Blackstone at Woonsocket crested and Pawtuxet River crested in Cranston 
Statewide  3/30/2001 Riverine & urban flooding  N/A  3 – 5”  Renewed flooding to already saturated areas. Blackstone, Pawtuxet Rivers surpassed flood stages 
Glocester  5/29/2001 Stormwater flooding  N/A  2” in 1 hour  Road washout on Route 102 
Statewide  6/17/2001 flooding  N/A  5-7”  washouts in Foster from runoff, building foundations washed out from runoff in Coventry 
Statewide  4/14/2004 Urban & Stormwater flooding  N/A  2-4”  Accumulated rain over past week caused Blackstone and Woonasquatucket Rivers to hit flood stages. Roadways in low lying areas flooded 
 
Urban/Stormwater Flooding The flood of March 1968 constitutes the record flood for much of the state, except for main-stem flooding along the Blackstone River in August 1955 and local flooding along headwater streams in the Pawtuxet and Pawcatuck Basins in November 1927, January 1964, February 1965, and August 1967. The March 1968 flood resulted from heavy rainfall that followed a period of sustained snowmelt which had caused stream flows to be much above normal. The August 1955 flood, which caused a record flooding along the main rivers in the Blackstone River Basin in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, and the Thames River Basin (predominantly in Connecticut), resulted from torrential rainfall accompanying Hurricane Diane. Damages from the 1955 flood were estimated at approximately $28 million for the state, with the Woonsocket area hardest hit in Rhode Island. Except for a small local protection project at Blackstone, Massachusetts, there were no federal flood control projects in operation at the time of the flood. Subsequently two projects in Rhode Island - for Upper and Lower Woonsocket - and two in Massachusetts, were constructed for Blackstone River Basin flood protection. The U.S. Corps of Engineers estimates that these projects prevented about $8 million in damages in the flood of March 1968. The rivers of the Narragansett Bay Drainage Basin are susceptible not only to storms of local origin and continental storms borne by the "prevailing westerlies" but also to coastal storms and hurricanes of tropical origin. The situation is somewhat different for the Pawcatuck River Basin in southwestern Rhode Island. The Corps of Engineers observed in 1981 that, "River flooding has not been a major problem to date, as the vast amount of swampland within the basin has made for very slow flood formation with only minor flood peaks." In the past decade and continuing today, communities in the Pawcatuck River Basin have been and are forecast to continue to experience significant development pressure that, if not appropriately controlled, could seriously affect the water-absorbing capacity of the land that has minimized flooding in the area to date. Repeated flooding in certain inland areas of the state has required various site-specific hazard mitigation measures. Most dramatic in scope, to date, was the situation in the Belmont Park section of the city of Warwick. Flooding occurred most recently in January 1979 when a combination of above-normal temperatures and rainfall caused the Pawtuxet River to overflow its banks, inundating about 30 acres of land in the Belmont Park area, a residential section built in and adjacent to a flood hazard area. Flooding had worsened with increased upstream development. To prevent repeated flooding, some 60 homes were purchased and demolished. Currently, frequent flooding of the Pawtuxet River in the Natick Flats section between Warwick and West Warwick has occasioned investigation of potential flood control measures by the Corps of Engineers.
 

Urban flooding has been a recurrent problem in Providence, Pawtucket, North Providence, West Warwick and densely developed sections of other cities and towns. Urban flooding involves the overflow of storm sewer systems and is usually caused by inadequate drainage following heavy rain or rapid snowmelt. Attention to reducing or delaying storm runoff can help to mitigate such flooding.

Location of Coastal Erosion-related Flooding Past attempts to seek FEMA funding on this issue have been refused with the explanation that FEMA does not fund coastal erosion studies. Alternate sources of funding such as the State Coastal Program or even NOAA have been unavailable as the funding for those agencies have experienced severe funding cuts. It is hoped that funding could become available to complete a statewide assessment of the impact of coastal erosion, particularly since Rhode Island has the most densely developed coastline in the country (for its size).   Why wait - get your Rhode Island Flood Insurance today and protect your family.