Iowa Flood Information System

  • IFIS: A One-Stop Web Platform

    Providing access to community-based flood conditions, forecasts, and inundation maps, as well as flood-related information, visualizations, and applications

    Iowa Flood Information System
    Small waves ripple across the surface of a body of water

Information is the Key to Flood Resilience

Official seal of the state of IowaSponsor/grant agency:

State of Iowa

Team:

Witold Krajewski and Ibrahim Demir

Information for All

Funded through the IFC’s annual state appropriation

2009–present

Project Period

Iowa

Location

Services provided by IFC:

The Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS) is an easy-to-use, Google Maps–based web platform developed by the Iowa Flood Center (IFC) at the University of Iowa. The system provides real-time information on watersheds, precipitation, and stream levels for more than 1,000 Iowa communities. IFIS is available to all Iowans on the internet at ifis.iowafloodcenter.org/ifis/.

“The IFC has been very beneficial to the city of Cedar Falls. Being able to answer questions with a high level of confidence when a flood is occurring is invaluable.” —Cory Hines, Cedar Falls GIS Coordinator

Project Description:

IFIS helps communities prepare for and respond to floods before they occur, helping to minimize flood impacts and associated damages. The system includes real-time stream levels at nearly 250 locations, flood inundation maps showing the extent and depth of predicted flood waters for dozens of Iowa communities, weather conditions including current, past, and future rainfall accumulations, and much more.

March 2019 Flood Alerts

New and upcoming features include:

  • Additional stream sensors
  • Inundation mapping for the Missouri and Mississippi River basins
  • Improved flood forecasting for Iowa communities
  • Upgraded communication technologies