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SALT LAKE CITY -- Weather officials say a downpour in southern Utah has caused the Virgin River to overflow its banks in two towns near Zion National Park.
National Weather Service meteorologist Larry Dunn said Monday the river is running at flood levels and has exceeded its banks in spots near Hurricane and Virgin. No structures are threatened. St. George city officials asked residents to stay away from the city trail system and the Virgin and Santa Clara rivers due to the potential for flooding.
Washington County's emergency manager said water has washed out a road near Gunlock Reservoir and cut off a few homes, although the homes themselves are not threatened.
A section of the Zion-Mt. Carmel Highway in Zion National Park has been temporarily closed due to a washout from the rain. The road will remain closed until crews are able to stabilize the damaged section, likely several days.
The closed section of highway goes from the East entrance of the park to its junction with the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive. The 6 mile Zion Canyon Scenic Drive remains open.
As much as 8 inches of rain has fallen in some areas.
Dunn said, "The problem is, in addition to all the water we've had, all the rain, we're expecting it to rain for three more days. It's going to bring the rivers up even higher with more flooding, possibly major flooding."
He said the difficult part now is figuring how much precipitation will fall as snow or rain over the next few days because it could mean more water pouring into the Virgin River.
A flood warning is in effect for Kane and western Washington counties until this afternoon.
Click here for the weather forecast.
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Story written with contributions from Anne Forester, Marc Giauque and The Associated Press.
