Record Flooding Swamps Four Corners Region, Triggers Rooftop Rescues

Floodwaters pushed the San Juan River through Farmington, New Mexico, to the highest level ever recorded late Friday, part of a catastrophic flood event across the Four Corners region that forced hundreds of households to evacuate, triggered rooftop rescues and prompted Colorado's governor to declare a disaster emergency in 11 counties.

About four inches of rain fell on already-saturated ground across Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Arizona beginning Wednesday, the tail end of two months of heavy rain that had just broken a regional summer drought. By Friday night, the National Weather Service's Albuquerque office described the situation bluntly: catastrophic flooding was "ongoing in the San Juan River near and downstream of Farmington, including Shiprock," with the river at a record high stage.

Rivers Reach Historic Highs

According to flood warnings issued overnight by the National Weather Service, the San Juan River at Farmington surpassed its previous record crest from September 1909, officially becoming "the flood of record." A few miles upstream, the Animas River at Farmington climbed to its highest level since 1927, swamping the city's riverwalk and forcing its closure. Downstream at Shiprock, on the Navajo Nation, the river was forecast to crest near 20.7 feet, a level expected to produce major flooding.

Federal stream gauge data maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey tracks the Animas River at the same Farmington crossing, part of the network hydrologists and emergency managers used throughout the week to monitor the rapidly rising water.

The city of Farmington told roughly 600 households along the San Juan River to evacuate, according to a city spokesperson cited in Associated Press reporting carried by NBC News. Downstream, the Navajo Nation braced for floodwaters that forecasters did not expect to crest until late Friday night or early Saturday.

Rescue Crews Race the Water

In San Juan County, New Mexico, crews used National Guard boats, helicopters and amphibious vehicles through the night Thursday and into Friday to reach residents trapped by rising water, county spokesperson Devin Neeley said.

"We're picking people off of roofs," Neeley told the Associated Press, adding that deputies were still working to free people from homes with three to four feet of standing water inside. He said the county sheriff himself was "damn near going to lose his home."

Navajo Nation Deputy Police Chief Donnie Kee urged residents not to wait. "Do not wait to make your evacuations," he said, telling families to prepare for their animals as well as themselves. Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe called the flood "once in a generation," saying many residents underestimated how bad it would get.

In southern Colorado, flooding on the San Juan River ran roughly three feet higher than a flood last year that itself was considered a 100-year event, according to National Weather Service forecaster Frank Pereira. More than five inches of rain fell near Pagosa Springs. In South Fork, pickup trucks were submerged on Highway 160, and floodwater surrounded trailers at the Fun Valley Family Resort campground. Colorado National Guard crews hoisted two people and their three dogs to safety from a partially submerged recreational vehicle in Archuleta County, where Sheriff Mike Le Roux described the water as "unprecedented" but said he knew of no deaths or serious injuries. U.S. 550 — the "Million Dollar Highway" between Silverton and Ouray — was closed by runoff damage, and Gov. Jared Polis declared a disaster emergency covering 11 counties.

Further west, a shipping container drifted down a flooded street in Hurricane, Utah, where dozens of homes were swamped earlier in the week before residents began returning. In Arizona, tornadoes earlier in the week tore off roofs, toppled trees and knocked out power.

A Region Already on Edge

The flooding is the second major water disaster to hit the Four Corners in barely six weeks. In mid-September, flash flooding on the Navajo Nation near Newcomb, New Mexico, killed three people, including a child, and left Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren to declare a state of emergency as communities were cut off by washed-out roads.

• Roughly 4 inches of rain fell region-wide since Wednesday, on ground already soaked by two months of rain that ended a long summer drought
• About 600 households were ordered to evacuate in Farmington, New Mexico, alone
• Colorado's governor declared a disaster emergency across 11 counties
• No deaths or serious injuries had been confirmed as of Friday night, officials said

For residents like Tyler Scartaccini, whose wife and three children evacuated their southern Colorado property while he stayed behind to watch it, the flip from drought to disaster has been disorienting. "I felt like we were in a very safe place," he told the AP, "and now I don't feel that so much."

What Comes Next

Forecasters said the moisture fueling the flooding traced back to the remnants of Pacific tropical systems. A flood watch for flash flooding remained in effect for parts of west-central and northwest New Mexico into Saturday morning, and the National Weather Service forecast up to another half-inch of rain for northwestern New Mexico over the weekend — a modest amount, but enough to concern officials watching rivers that have not yet crested in some stretches. In Utah, meteorologist Alex DeSmet said flood watches for the southeastern part of the state would remain in effect into the weekend as streams continued running high.

Emergency officials in both states said their immediate priority remained search-and-rescue and keeping people out of floodwater, with damage assessments and recovery planning to follow once rivers recede. Farmington's riverwalk and other low-lying areas were expected to stay closed through at least the weekend.