Four Corners Deluge Brings Rooftop Rescues, Record River Levels

Four Corners Deluge Brings Rooftop Rescues, Record River Levels

Rivers Burst Their Banks Across Four States

Severe flooding swept the Four Corners region on Friday, October 23, stranding residents on rooftops, washing out roads, and forcing evacuations in low-lying parts of Colorado and New Mexico. The region, where the boundaries of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah meet, had already endured days of flooding that swamped dozens of homes in Utah. Earlier in the week, tornadoes tore across Arizona, ripping off roofs, toppling trees onto houses, downing power lines and injuring at least one person.

Farmington Orders Hundreds Out as Navajo Nation Braces

In San Juan County, New Mexico, the San Juan and Animas rivers overflowed into streets, homes and businesses from Shiprock through Farmington. About 600 households in Farmington were told to evacuate, and the water reclamation facility in nearby Bloomfield was shut down. Rescuers worked Thursday night into Friday with New Mexico National Guard boats, helicopters and amphibious vehicles. County spokesperson Devin Neeley described crews lifting people from roofs and pulling them from homes holding 3 to 4 feet of water, with more water on the way. Downstream, the Navajo Nation braced for floodwaters not expected to peak until late Friday or early Saturday, with Deputy Police Chief Donnie Kee urging residents to move themselves, their families and their animals without delay.

Sheriff Reports Unprecedented Water, No Deaths So Far

Archuleta County Sheriff Mike Le Roux called the volume of water unprecedented, describing widespread catastrophic damage to state, county and private infrastructure, and said he knew of no deaths or serious injuries. In southern Colorado, a Colorado National Guard helicopter crew hoisted two people and their three dogs from a partly submerged recreational vehicle after they drove onto a flooded road and were swept into a river. Authorities imposed mandatory evacuations along four rivers, the San Juan, Rio Blanco, Navajo and Piedra, and the town of Pagosa Springs, famed for its riverside hot springs, issued an emergency disaster declaration. By Friday the sheriff's office advised residents to shelter in place as levels began to recede, warning that many roads remained impassable.

Saturated Ground Meets Tropical Moisture

Forecasters said the moisture came from the remnants of Pacific tropical systems that had come ashore. The ground was already saturated: two months of heavy rain had ended a summer drought, and about 4 inches had fallen since Wednesday alone. One state emergency official called it the third or fourth round of such moisture in as many weeks. Rainfall topped 5 inches around Pagosa Springs, according to National Weather Service forecaster Frank Pereira, and the San Juan River in southern Colorado ran a full 3 feet higher than a 100-year flood seen only a year earlier. Climate scientist Daniel Swain told NPR the storms were fueled by exceptional atmospheric moisture drawn from record-warm waters off the West Coast, driven by a strong El Nino event and a pre-existing marine heat wave.

More Rain Coming Before Rivers Crest

The danger is not over. Forecasters expect up to half an inch of additional rain across parts of the Four Corners this weekend, concentrated in northwestern New Mexico, and flood watches remain in effect with streams in southeastern Utah running fast and high. Officials warn returnees that receding gauges do not mean safe roads, and downstream communities on the Navajo Nation face their highest water after upstream towns have begun to drain.