# General information

AccuWeather's River Gauge API delivers observational river data from across the **United States**, including water levels, flood-stage thresholds, action information, and low-water thresholds.

Data is returned as simplified **JSON** by default. Pass `format=geojson` to receive GeoJSON instead, or `includeUnits=true` to expand each measurement into value/unit/unitType triples.

→ See the [River Gauge Guide](/developers/river-gauge/guide) and [Parameters](/developers/river-gauge/parameters) for endpoint details and request patterns.

## River status

Every observation includes a categorical status describing the river's current flood condition. Each status has a corresponding color, returned both as RGB components and a hexadecimal value — useful for color-coded map overlays and dashboards.

| Status | ID string | Hex code | Swatch |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Major flooding | `major` | `#CC33FF` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#CC33FF",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| Moderate flooding | `moderate` | `#FF0000` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#FF0000",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| Minor flooding | `minor` | `#FF9900` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#FF9900",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| Near flood stage | `action` | `#FFFF00` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#FFFF00",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| No flooding | `no_flooding` | `#00FF00` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#00FF00",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| Flood category not defined | `not_defined` | `#72AFE9` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#72AFE9",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| At or below low water threshold | `low_threshold` | `#906320` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#906320",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| Observations are not current | `obs_not_current` | `#BDC2BB` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#BDC2BB",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |
| Out of service | `out_of_service` | `#666666` | <span style={{display:"inline-block",width:"60px",height:"16px",background:"#666666",borderRadius:"3px"}} /> |