Fourmile Creek drains across 76,000 acres starting in the agricultural fields of Story County, eventually draining through the City of Ankeny and on downstream to Des Moines and Pleasant Hill before entering the Des Moines River. The creek has a long history of flooding and water quality issues and local communities responded in 2012 by forming the Fourmile Creek Watershed Management Authority. This collaborative group joins cities, counties, and soil & water conservation districts together to tackle these watershed issues. These communities were reminded recently about why it is so important to continue to work together to improve water quality and reduce flooding.
As rain entered Central Iowa on the evening of June 30th, 2018 few people would expect that up to 10 inches of rain would drop in the upper portion of the Fourmile Creek watershed in the City of Ankeny. This rain would all flow downstream causing the stream to reach record levels in the City of Des Moines. This video linked below was taken by a resident of the City of Ankeny and truly shows the power of flooding and why we need to continue to work to hold water where it falls and keep homes out of the floodplain.
