Alpine hit with 'worst flooding ever seen' after storm


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ALPINE — An overnight storm caused flooding along the Quail burn scar in Alpine. At least one home was damaged and crews are saying it could take days to clean up.

The streets along Box Elder Drive and Moyle Drive were most affected by the floods. The storm was concentrated in Dry Creek Canyon and dropped about a half inch in 30 minutes, sending mud and debris down the canyon. Crews are saying the flooding is the worst they've seen.

One house was flooded with 18 inches of mud and water. Homeowner Aaron Frazier and crews are working hard to mop it up Friday morning, but it will likely take some time.

"I saw that it was not typical rain water that we would clean up, but that it was really muddy and really thick and a lot sticks and rock and all kinds of junk," Frazier said, describing the water in his house.

There is also a shopping plaza that was flooded Friday morning. Lone Peak Fire Battalion Chief Joseph McRay said there was about a half mile wide area that the water was pouring through. But likely for most homeowners in the area, the waters went around the homes. Only minimal damage has been reported to the houses in the area.

"The crews from Alpine have been working hard to make sure they can do as much as possible to make sure they are diverting the mud and flow away from the homes," McRay said.

However, he said roads and the area in general is a muddy mess. Crews have been out a good portion of the night sandbagging homes and making sure no other structures are damaged.

"The cleanup is obviously going to take a few days. Crews will be working hard to make sure it is all cleaned up, make sure the debris basins are cleared out," McRay said.


The crews from Alpine have been working hard to make sure they can do as much as possible to make sure they are diverting the mud and flow away from the homes.

–Battalion Chief Joseph McRay


The chief also said the Quail Fire they had last year most likely played a big role in the flooding overnight, as the burn scars allow for the rain to just run down the mountain, with nothing standing in its way to soak up the moisture.

The National Weather Service expected the rain to continue through Sunday, and the chief said it will take several days to cleanup all the mud and the roads.

The storm also caused flash flooding in Dry Creek Canyon, causing two hikers to be stranded overnight when their trail got wiped out. They were safely rescued Friday morning.

Sgt. Eldon Packer said the couple got stuck because of flash flooding from the storm. They had been hiking from Silver Lake Thursday night when the storm rolled in on top of them. About a half inch of water came down in less than 30 minutes and wiped out their trail. The hikers did have food and their cell phones had service.

"First time I talked with them on the phone you could hear the thunder and lighting, the crack of the lighting of the thunder almost right on top of them," Packer said. "Pretty scary situation for them."

Search and rescue teams found the couple exposed along the ridge line about three and a half miles up Dry Creek Canyon in a very steep rocky area.


First time I talked with them on the phone you could hear the thunder and lighting, the crack of the lighting of the thunder almost right on top of them. Pretty scary situation for them.

–Sgt. Eldon packer


Packer, who was at a command post with the hikers, said rescue teams reached the hikers Friday morning and are now safely off the mountain. Besides being cold and wet, they are in good condition.

The National Weather service is keeping a close watch over the six burn areas in Utah, because they carry a high potential for flash floods. Officials said that quickly getting resources to the scene of flood sites is essential in preventing property damage or even death.

"It's an incredibly dangerous situation," said state hydrologist Brian McInerney.

In response to flash flood warnings, officials and volunteers are doing whatever they can to prepare for potential flooding.

Volunteers, homeowners and even local leaders are busy filling sandbags to prepare.

"Call came through from Alpine City saying they needed people to fill sandbags, so I dropped everything and came out here," said Alpine resident Dave Johnson.

"If we have the amount of rain that we had last night, we need these sandbags so that we can control and direct the water that's coming out of these canyons," said Joseph McRae, battalion chief for the Lone Peak Fire Department.

A team of experts at the national weather service office in Salt Lake City are watching for oncoming storms. They are often the ones to get the first signs of trouble.

"We want to make sure we get the word out early enough, so they can mitigate and be ready if we do have a debris flow," McInerney said.

A total of six remotely-monitored stations are set up at burn scars statewide.

"This is what we're watching right now," McInerney said. "And we're up to two inches in some of these areas. A little bit of rain will produce a lot of mud and debris coming off of these burn scars."

Burned out areas, like the new burn scars at the Rockport Fire, can drastically change how rainfall impacts nearby homes. Once this happens, there is very little time to react.

"Many times what we see is that window wells are filled up with mud, and as the mud continues, it breaks the windows, it slams the door shut. It fills up the room with mud...in about five seconds," McInerney said.

McInerney said that if you're in one of the areas below a burn scar, don't let any young children sleep in the basement.

Contributing: Andrew Wittenberg

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