FARMINGTON, N.M. — Hundreds of homes near the Four Corners remained evacuated and without power Saturday after days of heavy rain sent record floodwaters out of Colorado’s mountains into New Mexico and northeastern Arizona, KNAU reported, citing the Associated Press.
More than 5 inches of rain fell in places. Though the San Juan River and other streams have dropped from record highs, new storms brought warnings of more surges. “This is not over, and we need you to monitor alerts,” Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe said.
About 2,000 people in and around Farmington were affected, and at least a couple hundred were rescued, some from rooftops, including 11 helicopter hoist operations by the New Mexico National Guard.
Downstream, the San Juan flooded parts of the Navajo Nation, and a 2-mile stretch of U.S. 64 west of Shiprock was closed by water on the road. Upstream, the river hit its highest level in more than a century in Pagosa Springs, Colorado.
Officials asked people not to fly drones over flooded areas, which can endanger rescue aircraft. The flooding follows two months of on-and-off heavy rain from Pacific tropical moisture.
Sources: KNAU / Associated Press. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: Dicklyon / CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
