WINSLOW — The Little Colorado River surged past major flood stage at Winslow on Monday, and forecasters warned the levee protecting parts of the northern Arizona city could be overtopped overnight, KTAR News reported.
The river was at about 17 feet Sunday night and climbed to around the 25-foot major flood threshold by about 5 a.m. Monday, according to KTAR. At 4 p.m. Monday, the gauge read 25.25 feet, Arizona’s Family reported. Flood stage begins at 19 feet.
The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for the Little Colorado River from Winslow to Leupp. Its forecast showed the river could crest near 40 feet by 4 a.m. Tuesday, Arizona’s Family reported, and the river overtops the levee at about 25 feet.
Navajo County placed several areas under “GO” evacuation orders, including Bushman Acres, Ames Acres, and areas from the Flying J Travel Center to Minnetonka, an RV park and the Best Western Plus, according to KTAR.
The county opened shelters for evacuees on Monday. One listed site, the Cibecue Elementary School gym, was already full when the list was released, KTAR reported.
Winslow sits about 60 miles east of Flagstaff. The flooding there is part of a wider disaster across northern Arizona after last weekend’s storms, which closed highways, damaged homes in the Verde Valley and led to emergency declarations.
Residents in the area should follow Navajo County emergency alerts and never drive into flooded roads or washes.
Sources: KTAR News, Arizona’s Family. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: DMY at Hebrew Wikipedia / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
