Death Valley tourists flee but flash floods keep roads closed

Hundreds of hotelsGuests trapped in flash floods in Death Valley National Park are driven out after crews clear trails in rocks and mud Although roads damaged by flooding and clogged with debris were expected to remain closed next week, officials said Saturday.

According to the National Park Service, Navy and California Highway Patrol helicopters conducted aerial searches for vehicles stranded in remote areas, but found nothing. However, it may take several days to assess the damage. The park, located near the California-Nevada state line, has more than 1,000 miles of roads spanning 3.4 million acres.

No injuries were reported from Friday's record rains. The park has weathered 1.46 inches of rain in the Furnace Creek area. That's about 75% of what the region typically gets in a year and more than the record set for the entire month of August.

Only April 15, 1988, has had more rain than this since 1936, and the park's A source said it rained 1.47 inches.

Nikki Jones, a restaurant worker who lives in a hotel with her co-workers, said on Friday morning when she went out for breakfast. I said it was raining. By the time she returned, the water had pooled rapidly and reached the doorway of her room.

"I couldn't believe it," said Jones. "Never in my life have I seen water rise so fast." I put my luggage on the bed and put a towel on the bottom of the doorway to keep the water from running in. they will be flooded.

"People around me said they had never seen anything this bad. They had been working here for a while," Jones said.

Their room was safe, but her other five or six rooms in the hotel were flooded. The carpets in those rooms were later torn out.

Most of the rain -- just over an inch -- came in heavy downpours between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. on Friday, said John Adair, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Las Vegas. I'm here.

Flooding "blocked access to Death Valley, washed away roads and created a lot of debris," Adair said.

Highway 190 – the main road through the park – is expected to reopen between Furniss He Creek and Pahrump by Tuesday, officials said.

Park employees stranded on closed roads are also in a designated location except in emergencies, officials. continued to evacuate to Said.

Arizona-based adventure company photographer John Surlin said he witnessed the flood while perched on a hillside rock trying to photograph the lightning bolt. A storm is approaching.

"The sound of the rocks coming down the mountain was unbelievable," he said in a phone interview Friday afternoon.

Most of the area has receded, leaving thick layers of mud and gravel. About 60 vehicles were partially buried in mud and debris. There were numerous reports of road damage, with residential waterways in the Cow Creek area of ​​the park broken in multiple places. Homes were also damaged.

Parks manager Mike Reynolds said in a statement, "The severity and widespread nature of this rainfall will take time to rebuild and reopen everything.

According to Thurlyn, who lives in Chandler, Arizona and has been visiting the park since 2016, the rain started around 2 a.m. on Friday.

1990 Said Sirlin, principal guide for Incredible Weather Adventures, who began chasing storms in Minnesota and the Highlands in the 1980s,

"a lot of water was running several feet deep. It's probably covered with three to four feet of rock," he said.

Meanwhile, heavy rains drenched Las Vegas,the ceiling of the casino flooded

Several other national parks were hit by severe flooding this summer. In June, Yellowstone experienced historic levels of flooding, washing away many roads in the park and disrupting tourism. Guests were forced to evacuate. Some roads remain closed for repairs

National According to the Park Service, climate change is affecting its properties and surrounding towns, from rising sea levels in the Florida Evergladesto drought-induced wildfires in Yosemite, California 

Elsewhere portions of Kentucky flooded in late July{ It was hit by 199} . At least 35 people died and hundreds were left homeless.

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