Overview
- Thunderstorms moving over the Cottonwood Fire burn scar on Tuesday produced measurable rain and led the National Weather Service to issue a flash flood warning for the area.
- Beaver city officials shut off the town’s pressurized irrigation system after dirty, debris-laden water entered the lines and posed a contamination and flow risk.
- U.S. Forest Service managers pulled crews off the fireline earlier than usual and reassigned them to fill thousands of sandbags for residents at higher risk of flooding.
- State emergency managers set up a camera along State Route 153 that showed fast-moving water near the creek and local leaders held public meetings to coordinate sandbagging and preparedness as storms continue this week.
- The Cottonwood Fire has burned about 97,458 acres, destroyed roughly 150 structures and is about 80% contained, and experts warn burned slopes shed water much faster so even brief storms can cause dangerous debris flows that will complicate recovery and damage infrastructure.