Floodwaters tear through Kane County communities

Floodwaters tore through parts of Kane County Mon­day evening, September 28, inundating properties around Orderville, Glen­dale and Mt. Carmel Junc­tion as heavy rain sent the East Fork of the Virgin River and normally dry washes surging beyond their banks.

A shipping container is swept downstream in the East Fork of the Virgin River near Mt. Carmel Junction Monday evening, September 28. Three shipping containers were swept away during the flooding, according to a nearby property owner. Video stills by Mark Folkerson.

Videos and photographs showed muddy water rush­ing through developed areas of Orderville, surrounding homes and leaving mud and debris behind. Floodwater also spread across portions of Thunderbird Golf Course near Mt. Carmel Junction.

By Wednesday, officials said Orderville and Mt. Carmel Junction were among the hardest-hit ar­eas. Mud and debris covered roads and yards, and one Orderville home had about three feet of water in its basement. No injuries were reported in Kane County.

KSL meteorologist Matt Johnson said widespread rainfall totals of about one to 1.4 inches fell over the headwaters of the Virgin River and its tributaries. At Mt. Carmel Junction, property owner Clayton Cox told KUTV that three shipping containers were swept downstream after a drainage overflowed. Flood­water also carried cars and dumpsters and filled a fish­ing pond near his business.

The National Weather Service said flooding was occurring along the Virgin River system late Monday, prompting a flood warning covering western Kane and eastern Washington counties.

The flooding extended well beyond communities along the U.S. 89 corri­dor. Zion National Park dispatch confirmed flash flooding in Heaps Canyon and several other park drainages Monday evening. KSL reported six people stranded on the Barracks off-road trail southwest of Mt. Carmel Junction and three others in Heaps Canyon.

Farther east, dangerous flooding struck the Paria River and Wahweap Creek watersheds. At 11:42 p.m., trained weather spotters reported a very large flood wave moving down Wah­weap Creek toward Lake Powell near Big Water. Just after midnight Tuesday, a gauge on the Paria River at U.S. 89 recorded a flood wave exceeding 3,000 cubic feet per second.

A flash flood warning was also issued for Lick Wash and downstream into Buckskin Gulch.

Kane County Emergency Management, the Kane County Sheriff’s Office and Roads Department contin­ued working Wednesday with municipalities and state and federal agencies to address flood damage.

Officials also warned that debris left in the East Fork could pose additional prob­lems downstream. Kane County Sheriff’s Lt. Alan Alldredge said debris could move through drainages in Zion National Park and into Washington County, potentially collecting at choke points.