Weather service issues flood watch, cautions communities near recent wildfires

SALT LAKE CITY — The first week of the monsoon season has already been eventful in Utah, helping calm some of the state’s largest fires in nearly a decade but also causing some flooding.

That’s expected to continue with an even stronger shot of storms to close out the workweek, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a flood watch for most of southern Utah. It advises that excessive rainfall is possible on Thursday, which could cause flooding in slot canyons, normally dry washes and slickrock areas commonly found in the region’s outdoor gems, along with low-lying areas and recent burn scars.

People are advised to consider alternative plans while recreating in the region. Flash flooding is “probable” across most of the national parks and monuments in southern Utah, and possible elsewhere.

The Forsyth, France Canyon, Cottonwood and Monroe Canyon burn scars — scattered across southern and central Utah — from the past two fire years are specifically mentioned in the weather service alert, as well. The agency’s Grand Junction, Colorado office, which handles eastern Utah forecasting, advises similar concerns near the Babylon Fire in San Juan County.

Some flooding has already happened from monsoonal storms since the pattern began developing on Sunday, including at the Cottonwood Fire near Beaver. City officials said on Tuesday that they had to shut off the area’s pressurized irrigation system because dirty water from flooding has entered it. It remains off until further notice.

“Our entire watershed for the Beaver River and North Creek area has been impacted,” Beaver County Commissioner Tammy Pearson said. “It comes right out of the mouth of the canyon, right through town. There’s no buffer anywhere.”

A flood warning was issued after radars indicated that a quarter to over a half-inch of rain fell over the fire’s burn scar. Firefighters battling the massive blaze reported on Wednesday debris flows made some routes in the area “impassable at times,” although it also slowed down fire behavior.

County leaders have worked to reduce the threat by installing reservoirs and diversion systems. Still, Pearson said the possibility of heavy rain sending water and debris downstream remains a major concern.

Many property owners had only a limited window to prepare before storms arrived. Beaver County officials partnered with the Governor’s Office, the Utah Department of Transportation and other state agencies to install cameras throughout the canyon. Pearson said the system is intended to provide advance notice if floodwaters begin moving downstream.

Over 680,000 acres of land have burned in Utah over the past five years, more than half of which have come this year. Some communities near these have already made sandbags available or held sandbag filling events.

In Beaver, thousands of sandbags have been filled as community members rally to prepare for possible flooding.

“Anybody that’s anywhere near a burn scar, just keep an eye to the sky and make sure that you’ve got an escape route or some higher ground that you can get to,” Pearson said.

More moisture to come

More flood warnings were issued on Wednesday in and around Zion National Park, as a storm may have produced up to an inch of rain in the area.

Similar flood watches are possible on Friday and beyond, the agency added. All alerts could be elevated to warnings in localized areas, depending on when and where storms develop.

“The flash flood threat is forecast to continue into Friday and potentially beyond, with extensions to this flood watch possible,” the weather service wrote.

A high-pressure system remains parked east of Utah, which is helping bring oceanic vapors into the state that mix with heat to produce scattered showers and thunderstorms. That pattern is expected to intensify, especially in southwest Utah on Thursday, but storms could also develop across central and northern Utah, potentially drifting into the Wasatch Front, KSL meteorologist Devan Masciulli said.

The strongest probabilities for storms remain in the mountains, but she said the chances those end up in the Wasatch Front pick up on Friday, continuing into the weekend. Scattered storms are forecast to continue across parts of the state into next week, as well.

“Make sure if you are out recreating — really not just southern Utah, but anywhere — have a way to be notified by severe weather alerts because flash flooding is very possible, as well as just severe thunderstorms, strong winds and even some hail,” she said.

Other areas near recent fires should also prepare, as flood risk can remain for up to five years or more after a wildfire, Utah Division of Emergency Management officials caution. They urge residents in those areas to get flood insurance and also take steps to protect their homes.

Contributing: Annette Campbell