Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
ALPINE — Alpine residents are watching the skies, worried more rain could bring more flooding.
Homeowners said they are worried because recent floodwaters have carved into the mountain and carried water, mud and debris to the neighborhoods. Flooding has occurred three times and each time it has gotten worse.
If Alpine gets more than half an inch of rain in 30 minutes the National Weather Service will issue a warning. A river of mud slid down the hillside in Alpine Saturday evening after .75 inches of rain fell in just 15 minutes.
"Public works have been up clearing debris basins," said Battalion Chief Joe McRae of the Lone Peak Fire Department. "They got those done; they worked 48 hours straight. They have done all the work they can to make sure all the drains and culverts are cleaned out."
Some homeowners said they are doing more work to protect their property by doing things like building dikes in their backyard. Neighborhoods are full of sandbags put in place in an attempt to keep the water away.
"I think we are as prepared as we can be," McRae said. "The drainage system is in place, but if we get a large storm like we had before I am sure with the mountains being saturated now it might compound the problem."
Related Story
Flooding drives Utah County evacuations
Residents of an Alpine neighborhood are being allowed back into their homes after floodwaters forced them to evacuate.A weather station is set up at the base of where the Dump Fire burned to monitor rainfall so warnings can be issued. Alpine City has a robot in place that will send voicemails, emails and even text messages in the event of an impending flood.
"On Saturday night, we used it for volunteers and 10 minutes after we sent out the call we had 200 volunteers," said Alpine City Spokeswoman Annalisa Beck.
While city officials said they hope they don't have to sound the alarm again anytime soon, keeping residents informed is a big part of the city's plan to minimize damage or injuries.
"We have found if people know what is going on they feel better about the situation and it helps us manage it a little bit better," Beck said.
People living in Saratoga Springs said they are also worried. In 2012, their neighborhood was hit with mud after flooding occurred in the burn scar left by the Dump Fire. A warning will be issued there if they get 1.25 inches of rain in an hour.
The highway in Huntington Canyon was closed for a time Wednesday morning because of ongoing flooding there.
