Widespread flooding across the Four Corners region has led to bridge closures, evacuations, and significant damage, impacting communities in Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico. The Navajo Police Department reported the closure of the U.S. 160 bridge over the San Juan River near the Arizona-Colorado border to traffic due to the severe weather. The Montezuma Creek Bridge was also closed.
Navajo emergency management personnel were actively working on Sunday to evacuate residents in Bluff, Montezuma Creek, and Aneth, all located in southeastern Utah. Concurrently, the National Weather Service office in Grand Junction issued a stark warning on Sunday of catastrophic flooding along the San Juan River, specifically between Four Corners and Mexican Hat, Utah.
The storm systems also affected communities across northern Arizona. In Lower Moencopi, a Hopi village situated near Tuba City, flooding displaced as many as 10 families. A fellow resident described how some individuals were forced to flee their homes with only the clothes they were wearing. Police issued warnings to evacuated residents, advising them not to return home due to ongoing dangers. The weather service warning further emphasized the peril, urging people to avoid crossing the river as low-water crossings were reported as flooded and potentially impassable.
Hopi officials have reported extensive damage, affecting homes, roads, bridges, and essential utilities across multiple communities within their jurisdiction. Similarly, Navajo police detailed a series of rescue operations and evacuations conducted in neighboring New Mexico and Utah in response to the flooding.
In New Mexico, specifically in the southern area of Shiprock, most residents had power restored by Saturday. However, some homes and businesses remained without electricity. The outage was attributed to four downed utility poles, according to a summary from an incident command briefing by the council and confirmed by Wilfred Franklin Jr., the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) Shiprock District Manager. Navajo police in northwestern New Mexico reported conducting 20 overnight rescue operations on Saturday, some involving multiple individuals. These rescue efforts were concentrated in Farmington and extended west toward Shiprock.
The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) addressed another critical issue on Sunday, stating that flooding had disrupted Shiprock’s wastewater treatment plant. To prevent sewage from backing up into homes and businesses, untreated wastewater was being discharged into the San Juan River. The utility was quick to reassure the public that its water supply operates on a separate system, had been unaffected by the flooding, and remained safe for use.
In light of the wastewater situation, NTUA urged Shiprock sewer customers to reduce their water consumption to minimize the volume of sewage flowing into the river. Recommended actions included postponing laundry, taking shorter showers, and using dishwashers less frequently. Furthermore, the authority issued a broad public health advisory, urging people to steer clear of the San Juan River and all floodwaters within the affected areas. They advised keeping children, pets, and livestock away from these waters, cautioning that they could contain various pathogens and other contaminants posing health risks.
