NWS warns Southwest of flash floods amid saturated ground
Meteorologists predict up to four inches of rain by Monday, following Friday rescues in Arizona and Nevada.
By Amina Howard ·
The National Weather Service warned that heavy rains beginning Saturday evening threaten flash flooding in parts of the U.S. Southwest through Monday. The alert covers areas that are already saturated from a season of persistent precipitation.
Forecasters estimate that as much as four inches of rain could fall across the region during this weather event. Allison Santorelli, a meteorologist with the Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland, stated that the ground conditions make the area vulnerable to impact from even modest rainfall amounts.
Flood watches have been issued for nearly all of Arizona, along with portions of southern Utah, southwestern Colorado, western New Mexico, and southern Nevada. These areas include the Four Corners region, a sparsely populated zone where four states meet, which has experienced severe flooding recently.
Santorelli indicated that the weekend rain is expected to cause both flash flooding and small-stream flooding. The service’s warnings reflect the combined effect of new precipitation and the existing moisture in the soil.
Rescue operations began Friday night in the affected states. The Phoenix Fire Department reported saving people from four vehicles on flooded streets. In Scottsdale, fire Captain Dave Folio described rescuing a person from a vehicle before another car carrying two people entered the same water.
Folio noted in a video that two inches of water can sweep a vehicle off its wheels, and he reported the vehicles were submerged in three to four feet of water. In Henderson, Nevada, crews performed three swift-water rescues during a Friday afternoon downpour.
City officials in Henderson confirmed that one person was rescued from the top of a stuck vehicle, two others were pulled from a car swept off the road, and a third person rescued from a wash later died at a hospital from cardiac arrest. In Bullhead City, Arizona, heavy rains left water, rocks, and debris on streets, forcing the closure of local parks.
