San Juan County Evacuations Hit 21.12-Foot Flood Stage
Residents along the San Juan, Animas, and La Plata rivers were ordered to leave their homes on Monday as the second major storm system in two weeks overwhelmed saturated soils.
By Emmanuel Faure ·
County officials ordered residents living within half a mile of the San Juan, Animas, and La Plata rivers to evacuate on Monday. This marked the second mandatory evacuation in San Juan County in less than two weeks. Preemptive power shutoffs were implemented in several low-lying areas, affecting hundreds of households in Bloomfield and Farmington.
Devin Neeley, the county spokesman, stated that evacuations were in place from border to border, encompassing impacts in neighboring Colorado and Arizona. He noted that while the flooding effects were expected to be substantial, no fatalities had been reported as of Monday.
The National Weather Service reported that weekend storms deposited 1.5 inches of rain on Farmington and 2 to 3 inches on the Durango, Colorado, area. Vicki Shaffer, an incident public information officer for Archuleta County in Colorado, explained that the ground was already saturated from the previous week's storms, leaving little capacity to absorb the new precipitation.
Heavy rains began Saturday night and continued intermittently into Monday morning, causing the three rivers to spill over their banks. Matt DeMaria, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Albuquerque office, noted that the water was coming from both New Mexico and Colorado. The Colorado Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management coordinated with its New Mexico counterpart to track cross-border water flow.
The San Juan River was projected to reach a peak of 12.30 feet in Farmington on Monday evening. In Shiprock, located on the Navajo Nation in western San Juan County, the river was expected to crest at 21.12 feet around midnight. Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe identified Shiprock as a primary concern, citing the danger of evacuating residents during the overnight hours.
The current flooding follows a catastrophic surge earlier in the month that damaged at least 1,500 homes. Officials estimated that 2,000 to 3,000 residents were displaced during that first event, and many had not yet returned home when the new orders were issued on Monday. Neeley described the current situation as involving more people and a larger area than the previous storm.
The American Red Cross shelter at McGee Park in Farmington housed 191 people overnight on Sunday. The Farmington Electric Utility System cut power in the South Church Street and County Road 5005 areas in Bloomfield, as well as in Lee Acres, Wild Horse Valley, and Harper Valley. Neeley estimated the number of affected homes at a few hundred, though he acknowledged the figure could be higher.
Bloomfield resident Almie Lambson evacuated his home for the second time on Sunday night after the river jumped its banks again. He reported waist-deep water in his crawlspace, which damaged insulation, ductwork, and electrical systems. He said he had lived in the home for 22 years and had never experienced such conditions. Neeley said first responders were working to keep crews rested after rescuing between 200 and 300 people during the previous storm.
