50 stranded people rescued after heavy rains cause floods, road closures near Dollar Ridge

FRUITLAND, Duchesne County – Heavy rains on Sunday caused the Strawberry River to overflow, forcing authorities to shut down a nearby road and save about fifty people. failed by fast moving floodwater.

The river formed a new channel flowing in the middle of Strawberry River Road west of Camelot Resort, Duchesne County Sheriff David Boren said in a post on Facebook.

The road was heavily damaged by flooding along the Dollar Ridge Ridge burn scar and will remain closed until crews can repair it, the message read. There will be no access to Timber Canyon as long as the road is closed.

However, the Strawberry River Road to the east of Camelot remains open, officials said.

A flash flood warning was issued by the National Meteorological Service earlier Sunday for the Pinnacles and Camelot areas downstream of the Strawberry River, the National Weather Service in Salt Lake City tweeted .

At least 50 people who were trapped by water and debris were saved by Duchesne County sheriff's deputies, firefighters from the Department of Roads and firefighters assigned to the Dollar Ridge fire announced the sheriff's office.

A helicopter assigned to the fire also responded to the rescue teams to evacuate residents of the flooded areas.

"Given the damage caused by the Dollar Ridge fire, and the slope of the ground in the burn scar, any amount of rain has the possibility of triggering flash floods and debris flows, "said Boren. "People need to know this and take the proper precautions."

As of Sunday, the Dollar Ridge fire had burned just under 57,000 acres, or 89 square miles, and was contained at 93 percent, according to Inciweb.

The Wasatch County residents' eviction order, called W1, will move to pre-evacuation status starting Monday at 8 am.

The National Weather Service also issued a violent thunderstorm warning for parts of Piute and Sevier counties.

In Piute County, a violent storm in Marysvale included "quarter-sized hail" and winds up to 50 mph, reported weather officials.

U.S. Highway 89 was temporarily closed in both directions at Mile 173, approximately 6 miles south of Marysvale, due to flooding.

Photos

Yvette Cruz, KSL.com