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Rainwater floods Washington City homes along Main Street
Emergency crews and volunteers were still working Monday to clean up after the damage done to Washington County communities by flash floodingover the past five days.
In Dammeron Valley, consecutive heavy storms Thursday and Friday swamped dozens of homes and yards with mud and debris. Even after a considerable community effort on Sunday, when about 1,500 volunteers showed up to pitch in with clean-up efforts, some homeowners still faced ruined basements and expensive rebuilds.
Some residents measured more than three inches of rain falling in a single storm late Thursday, all coming over the course of a few hours.
In Washington City, flood waters followed a similar path into basements and low-lying yards, with neighbors rushing to help limit the damage.
The rain forced the temporary closure of the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway inside Zion National Park, and officials closed several of the park’s most popular hiking routes after rockfalls, mudslides and other debris took out large chunks of trails.
Neighboring Kane County had seen major flooding as well, with rocks and debris carving into homes and inundating area roadways.
A history of flooding
No deaths or significant injuries have been attributed to this week's floods, but they add to an extensive history in and around Zion and the greater St. George area. Such events have always claimed lives and property, but the damage has increased in recent years as the population has grown and more of the area has developed.
Some of the more significant flooding incidents in the area include:
2015
• On Sept. 14, 2015, in the deadliest known flash flood event in Utah's history, three mothers and 10 of their children were believed to have been killed in Hildale when their two vehicles were washed into a nearby flood channel. Three young boys survived, with 12 found dead. One boy, presumed dead, is still missing.
• On the same day, 20 miles to the north in Zion National Park, there were no survivorsamong a group of seven adventurers who wandered into a slot canyon to go canyoneering.
• In a separate incident the same day in the nearby Arizona Strip, a local man was found dead several miles away from where his heavily-damaged vehicle sat in a floodplain.
2010
• Several days of sustained rain in December of 2010 destroyed several small bridges and damaged homes in various parts of the county. Across the Arizona border in Littlefield, flooding in the Beaver Dam Wash destroyed several homes in the Beaver Dam Resort area, undercutting the banks and sending the houses plunging into the muddy water.
• Two men who had reportedly intended to build a log raft and float down the Virgin River through the Narrows in Zion National Park were found dead downstream.
2005
• The most memorable flooding for many current residents was in January 2005 when the Santa Clara River swelled from heavy rains and melting snow, cutting through its river banks and sending homes toppling into the water. More than $200 million in damages were reported and 50 families lost their homes.
One death was reported - a man driving near Quail Creek Reservoir was washed away after climbing onto the roof of his vehicle when trying to drive through a flooded wash.
1998
• Another flood in the Narrows in 1998 left two California hikers dead. A heavy rainstorm had caused the river to flow at more than 700 percent its normal range.
1997
• Eleven people were either killed or lost and presumed dead in a 1997 flash flood that swept through a normally dry wash in Antelope Canyon near Lake Powell. Only one person, a trail guide, survived the event by reportedly grabbing onto a ledge. His clothes were torn off by the force of the water.
1961
• Five Boy Scouts were presumed dead when their party experienced a flash flood while hiking the Narrows. A group of 26 Scouts from the Salt Lake City area camped overnight before heading into the popular hiking area, where a wall of water and debris swept through and carried off five members.
end quote from:
https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2018/07/16/floods-add-long-southern-utah-history-water-caused-damage/790349002/
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