<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2ELsg0_1H0Ru1CN00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2ELsg0_1H0Ru1CN00" width="1920" height="1280" ><figcaption>A channel cut into Oak Road in Winslow on Tuesday night carries floodwater into the fields beside the street instead of across it into homes. City crews and residents dug the opening together and the city plans to fill it and cover it with steel plates until the street can be repaved in the spring. Photo by Shawn White</figcaption></figure>At 3 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2, the Little Colorado River at Winslow crested at 25.29 feet according to provisional U.S. Geological Survey data from the gauge at the State Route 87 bridge, more than 3 feet above the previous record of 22.12 feet set in March 2023. The river held near that level for most of the day, reading 24.85 feet at 6 a.m., 24.97 feet at 12 noon and 24.99 feet at 6 p.m. and the gauge measured a peak flow of about 13,500 cubic feet per second at 6 p.m. By midnight the river had fallen to 23.94 feet and it stood at 23.05 feet at 6 a.m. Tuesday.The crest exceeded the 25-foot level at which the National Weather Service's impact statements for the gauge say the Winslow Levee is overtopped, bringing major flooding to portions of Winslow including Ames Acres and Bushman Acres.Winslow City Manager David Coolidge said the gauge reading does not account for the 7 to 10 feet of river channel below it, so even at 25 feet the water still had some way to go before reaching the top of the levee. Weather service forecasts issued Monday morning had called for a crest of 46.78 feet by 2 p.m., later revised to about 40 feet early Tuesday and Coolidge said the city was fortunate those calculations were wrong. The levee held and by Tuesday morning Navajo County was sending evacuated residents home.Navajo County Emergency Management said at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, that ground crews were evaluating the evacuated Winslow-area zones and checking the roads and access points around them and that officials were still monitoring water flowing into the river from lakes and reservoirs upstream. At 9:45 a.m. the county told residents of Ames Acres and Bushman Acres they could return under Ready status, with some roads still holding standing water. Bushman Acres was accessible only from North Road because the south access through Maple Street remained closed and residents on Oak Street between French Road and Sunset Road were limited to access for sandbagging and told to check with law enforcement.At 10 a.m. the county lifted the evacuation orders for Bushman Acres, Ames Acres and the area from the Flying J to Minnetonka, the RV park and the Best Western Plus Winslow Inn, along with the voluntary evacuation and shelter-in-place advisory for Five Mountain Estates north of town.The orders had been in place since early Monday, when the river climbed from just above the 19-foot flood stage late Sunday night to 24.81 feet by 7 a.m., according to the weather service. By 5 p.m. Tuesday, the county said its response was shifting to recovery, with damage assessments, infrastructure repairs and coordination of assistance as the priorities.Navajo County Emergency Management released a flood-related disaster survey to identify unmet needs, available through a link at 311info.net and asked residents not to drive through flooded roads or around barricades. County road closures listed at 3 p.m. Tuesday included McLaws Road in Holbrook, Silver Creek Drive in Snowflake and a partial closure of Porter Mountain Road at State Route 260 in Pinetop-Lakeside and the county directed drivers to az511.com for changes.On Tuesday night, city crews and local residents worked together on Maple Street to cut openings in the street so floodwater would drain into nearby fields instead of crossing the road into homes. The city plans to fill the cuts with material and cover them with steel road plates until the street can be repaved in the spring.Coolidge said water in Bushman Acres and the adjacent Winslow Plaza neighborhood may have been made worse by valves that normally carry drainage from parts of town into the river. With the river running so high, he said, water could have flowed backward through the valves into the neighborhoods instead of out and he suspected the valves had been open the entire time, though he said he does not know that for certain because the county is responsible for controlling them. Coolidge said he contacted the county to make sure the valves were closed Tuesday afternoon after being alerted to water almost crossing the street near Sunset and Oak roads and the county confirmed about two hours later that they were.On Thursday, with the river receding, Coolidge asked the county to reopen the valves so standing water could begin draining back into the river. He said he hopes the flooding will help expedite the levee reconstruction project.The river dropped below the 22-foot moderate flood stage by 5:18 p.m. Tuesday, when the gauge read 21.74 feet and fell below the 19-foot flood stage shortly after 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 4. It dropped below the 17-foot action stage around 3 a.m. Thursday and by 10 a.m. Friday the gauge read 14.09 feet with a flow of about 2,520 cubic feet per second. The weather service kept its flood warning for the river from Winslow to Leupp in effect until 8 p.m. Thursday, because flooding remained a threat downstream at Bird Springs, where the approaches to the Navajo Route 71 bridge flood when the Winslow gauge is above 17 feet and the crest arrives about 18 hours after it passes Winslow.Upstream, the weather service said at 9:43 a.m. Tuesday that water levels near Woodruff and at Holbrook had fallen below flood stage with no additional rises expected. The river at Holbrook had crested at 22.41 feet Monday and stayed within the levee and the USGS gauge near Joseph City peaked at 7.25 feet about 3:15 a.m. Tuesday, below the 9-foot flood stage there, according to provisional data.The Arizona Department of Transportation reopened State Route 87 north of Winslow between mileposts 344 and 346 on Tuesday, along with State Route 87 south of State Route 264 and State Route 377 north of Heber-Overgaard, all of which had been closed by flooding. ADOT said crews were continuing to clear debris and assess storm damage along the reopened highways and directed drivers to az511.gov for current conditions. McHood Park at Clear Creek in Winslow also will take a significant amount of time to clean up due to debris scattered by the flooding.Gov. Katie Hobbs declared a statewide state of emergency Monday afternoon, Nov. 2, making $200,000 in emergency funding available to local communities in addition to the $200,000 she directed to the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs under the Oct. 30 declaration for Navajo and Coconino counties. The governor's office said the new declaration covers affected areas across the state, activates the State of Arizona Emergency Response and Recovery Plan and authorizes the Arizona Division of Emergency Management to coordinate state assets and that the State Emergency Operations Center remains activated to manage debris removal and incoming requests. "The safety and security of every Arizonan is my top priority," Hobbs said in the release, adding that the declaration is meant to give local authorities the resources to clear roads, repair infrastructure and help displaced residents.The declaration names parts of Apache, Coconino, Gila, Greenlee, Navajo, Pinal and Yavapai counties and the Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, San Carlos Apache Tribe, San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe and White Mountain Apache Tribe. The governor's office had not announced a request for a federal disaster declaration as of Friday.On the Navajo Nation, President Buu Nygren said this week that damage from the fall storms is far greater than $20 million, that the Navajo Division of Transportation is working through more than 600 road requests and that 47 rescues had been carried out across the nation. Nygren warned residents Tuesday not to enter flood-damaged structures until authorities determine they are safe.The Navajo Nation remains under the emergency declaration the Commission on Emergency Management adopted in September and the Office of the Controller has notified chapters that chapter emergency funds may be used for immediate needs from the storms and flooding. Nygren also authorized four hours of paid administrative leave Monday afternoon for executive branch employees directly affected by the flooding.The Hopi Tribe's emergency declaration, issued Oct. 22 after flooding displaced families in Moenkopi, was set to run until 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, unless extended. The weather service reported Moenkopi Wash near Tuba City at 28.04 feet at 6:45 p.m. Wednesday, above the 27-foot flood stage at which water begins to encroach on homes in Lower Moenkopi Village and floods crop fields along the wash and forecast the wash to fall below flood stage Thursday evening.</div></body>

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At 3 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2, the Little Colorado River at Winslow crested at 25.29 feet according to provisional U.S. Geological Survey data from the gauge at the State Route 87 bridge, more than 3 feet above the previous record of 22.12 feet set in March 2023. The river held near that level for most of the day, reading 24.85 feet at 6 a.m., 24.97 feet at 12 noon and 24.99 feet at 6 p.m. and the gauge measured a peak flow of about 13,500 cubic feet per second at 6 p.m. By midnight the river had fallen to 23.94 feet and it stood at 23.05 feet at 6 a.m. Tuesday.

Levees hold against record river

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At 3 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2, the Little Colorado River at Winslow crested at 25.29 feet according to provisional U.S. Geological Survey data from the gauge

Levees hold against record river

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