San Juan River hits 31-foot crest, leaving raw sewage in Four Corners floodwaters
One person died in Santa Fe while three states and one territory remain under flood warnings.
By Haruka Ricci ·
The San Juan River reached a height of 31 feet on Monday, sending raw sewage and chemicals into the waterways of the Four Corners region.
The river stands one and a half feet above its designated flood stage of 23 feet. The National Weather Service expects the water level to drop below that threshold by Tuesday morning. This crest is slightly lower than the record high of 32 feet set in 1927.
The surge follows two months of heavy rain driven by El Niño conditions. The weather system pushed tropical moisture from the Pacific into the Southwest, overwhelming rivers in Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.
One person died in Santa Fe on Saturday. The county sheriff's office reported that a woman was swept away while her family attempted to cross a flooded arroyo in a vehicle. The father and child reached land, but rescuers found the woman's body a mile downstream.
In Bluff, Utah, residents evacuated over the weekend returned to their homes on Monday. County officials advised caution because several properties remained underwater. The weather service urged the public to stay out of the river due to contamination risks.
In New Mexico, the damage was severe. Hundreds of people in the Farmington area remained without power. San Juan County spokesperson Devin Neeley described the area as an active disaster zone. The county did not have official counts for damaged homes or evacuations.
Wilfred Franklin Jr., district manager for the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, confirmed that flooding damaged wastewater facilities near Shiprock. This caused sewage releases into the San Juan River. Fire Chief David Vega noted that gas and propane lines may also be broken.
Zach and Abigail Flatt evacuated their Bloomfield, New Mexico, home on Thursday evening. Zach estimated the water rose four feet in 30 to 40 minutes. The family watched via webcam as 18 inches of water covered their property, washing away 22 of their 24 chickens.
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and National Guard Major General Miguel Aguilar visited San Juan County on Monday to survey damage. The state's congressional delegation urged President Donald Trump to declare a state of emergency to release federal funds.
Teams in Colorado mapped affected roads and evacuation zones. Forecasters linked the heavy rainfall to El Niño. The region had previously suffered from drought before the recent storms struck.
Source: ABC News
