People are also reading…
FLOOD COVERAGE: Severe flooding pummels Mountain West, Yellowstone National Park
Torrential rains throughout the Mountain West have washed out bridges, eroded roadways and prompted evacuations. Communities in and around Yellowstone National Park are among some of the hardest hit.
As of Monday afternoon, the flooding activity had not softened and in some areas of the Mountain West, the activity is expected to worsen in the coming hours and days. As officials evacuated Red Lodge residents and Yellowstone closed its entrances due to extreme flooding, forecasters with the National Weather Service said larger towns downriver were set to see peak river flows starting Monday evening.
Stranded families sought new places to stay after record flooding closed Yellowstone's five entrances on Monday. Meanwhile, authorities worked to evacuate visitors inside the park.Â
Runoff in the Beartooth Mountains turned Rock Creek into a torrent early Monday morning, forcing dozens of residents from their homes and closing secondary highways.
After massive river flooding wiped out all roads to Gardiner on Monday, huge crowds of travelers and residents are trapped in the mountain town.
A video captured by Beartooth Slingshot Rentals captures devastating aerial footage of the flood roaring through the Red Lodge area.Â
Historic flooding damages homes, roads and bridges as the Stillwater and Boulder Rivers flood on Monday.Â
Historic flooding damages roads and bridges and floods homes along the Yellowstone River south of Livingston on Monday.
Photos: Devastation at Yellowstone National Park
Part of a home sits in Rock Creek in Red Lodge as historic flooding continues to devastate the town and region.
Part of a home sits in Rock Creek in Red Lodge as historic flooding continues to devastate the town and region.
Water and debris fill Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Water and debris surround a destroyed home on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
The roaring Yellowstone River is seen from the air sweeping over trees and near homes Tuesday, June 14, 2022, in Billings, Mont. (AP Photo/Brittany Peterson)
A home in Red Lodge is torn apart as historic flooding devastates the region.
A street badly damaged by flooding is seen, Tuesday, June 14, 2022, in Red Lodge, Mont. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
Residents of Red Lodge, Mont., inspect damage to a house that was flooded after torrential rains fell across the Yellowstone region, Tuesday, June 14, 2022. Local officials say more than 100 houses in the small city were flooded. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
Residents of Red Lodge, Montana, are seen clearing mud, water and debris from the small city's main street on Tuesday, June 14, 2022, after flood waters courses through a residential area with hundreds of homes. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
Debris is seen blocking a street in Red Lodge, Montana, on Tuesday, June 14, 2022, after floodwaters coursed through a neighborhood with hundreds of houses the day before. Residents were cleaning up after record floods in southern Montana this week. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
Flood damage is seen along a street Tuesday, June 14, 2022, in Red Lodge, Mont. Residents were cleaning up after record floods in southern Montana this week. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
Micah Hoffman is seen in his mud-covered yard as a pump removes water from his basement, Tuesday June 14, 2022, in Red Lodge, Mont. Residents were cleaning up after record floods in southern Montana this week. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
A vehicle on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge is trapped by boulders and debris as a result of the historic flooding in the region.
Water and debris fill Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region. For safety, people are advised to avoid the flood zone and debris when possible.
Homes and businesses on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge are damaged as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Water donations sit at the Carbon County Fair Grounds as crews and volunteers work to help those who have been evacuated.
Water and debris fill Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Jodi McKay places a pump hose in the street on Broadway Avenue as locals try to pump water from their homes and businesses as historic flooding devastates the town and region.
Debris and boulders fill a crack in the road on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Water and debris fill Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Water and debris fill Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Water rushes past a damaged bridge in Red Lodge as historic flooding continues to devastate the town and region.
Water and debris surround a destroyed home on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.
Water rushes past a home in Red Lodge as historic flooding continues to devastate the town and region.
Sandbags line Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Monday as historic flooding devastates the town and region.
A house that was pulled into Rock Creek in Red Lodge, Mont., by raging floodwaters is seen Tuesday, June 14, 2022. Officials said more than 100 houses in the small city were flooded when torrential rains swelled waterways across the Yellowstone region. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
A washed out bridge shown along the Yellowstone River Wednesday, June 15, 2022, near Gardiner, Mont. Historic floodwaters that raged through Yellowstone National Park may have permanently altered the course of a popular fishing river and left the sweeping landscape forever changed. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Ken Ebel is seen in front of his flood-damaged house and yard, Tuesday, June 14, 2022, in Red Lodge, Mont. Ebel says sandbags placed by volunteers likely spared his property from further damage. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
The roaring Yellowstone River is seen from the air sweeping over trees and near homes Tuesday, June 14, 2022, in Billings, Mont. (AP Photo/Brittany Peterson)
The roaring Yellowstone River is seen from the air sweeping over trees and near homes Tuesday, June 14, 2022, in Billings, Mont. (AP Photo/Brittany Peterson)
Chandler Peabody, left, gives a free meal to Perry Roberts near a flood-damaged neighborhood in Red Lodge, Mont., Tuesday, June 14 2022. Roberts' basement was inundated, ruining his hot water heater and furnace. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown)
This aerial photo provided by the National Park Service shows a washed out road at North Entrance Road, of Yellowstone National Park in Gardiner, Mont., on June 13, 2022. Flooding caused by heavy rains over the weekend caused road and bridge damage in Yellowstone National Park, leading park officials to close all the entrances through at least Wednesday. Gardiner, a town just north of the park, was isolated, with water covering the road north of the town and a mudslide blocking the road to the south. (Doug Kraus/National Park Service via AP)
This aerial photo provided by the National Park Service shows a flooded out North Entrance Road, of Yellowstone National Park in Gardiner, Mont., on June 13, 2022. Flooding caused by heavy rains over the weekend caused road and bridge damage in Yellowstone National Park, leading park officials to close all the entrances through at least Wednesday. Gardiner, a town just north of the park, was isolated, with water covering the road north of the town and a mudslide blocking the road to the south. (Doug Kraus/National Park Service via AP)
Floodwaters inundated property along the Clarks Fork Yellowstone River near Bridger, Mont, on Monday, June 13, 2022. The flooding across parts of southern Montana and northern Wyoming forced the indefinite closure of Yellowstone National Park just as a summer tourist season that draws millions of visitors annually was ramping up. (AP Photo/Emma H. Tobin)
A road is closed from floodwaters along the Clarks Fork Yellowstone River near Bridger, Mont., on Monday, June 13, 2022. The flooding across parts of southern Montana and northern Wyoming forced the indefinite closure of Yellowstone National Park just as a summer tourist season that draws millions of visitors annually was ramping up. (AP Photo/Emma H. Tobin)
Floodwaters inundate property near the Clarks Fork Yellowstone River in between Edgar and Fromberg, Mont., on Monday, June 13, 2022. The flooding across parts of southern Montana and northern Wyoming forced the indefinite closure of Yellowstone National Park just as a summer tourist season that draws millions of visitors annually was ramping up. (AP Photo/Emma H. Tobin)
Floodwaters inundate property along the Clarks Fork Yellowstone River in between Edgar and Fromberg, Mont., on Monday, June 13, 2022. The flooding across parts of southern Montana and northern Wyoming forced the indefinite closure of Yellowstone National Park just as a summer tourist season that draws millions of visitors annually was ramping up. (AP Photo/Emma H. Tobin)
The highway between Gardiner and Mammoth in Montana is washed out trapping tourists in Gardiner, as historic flooding damages roads and bridges and floods homes along area rivers on Monday, June 13, 2022. (Larry Mayer/The Billings Gazette via AP)
The bridge to Tom Miner Basin off of Highway 89 south of Livingston has been washed out as major flooding washed away roads and set off mudslides in Yellowstone National Park in Montana on Monday. June 13, 2022. (Larry Mayer/The Billings Gazette via AP)
In this photo provided by the National Park Service, is a washed out bridge from flooding at Rescue Creek in Yellowstone National Park, Mont., on Monday, June 13, 2022. (National Park Service via AP)
In this photo provided by the National Park Service, is high water in the Gardiner River along the North Entrance to Yellowstone National Park in Montana, that washed out part of a road on Monday, June 13, 2022. (National Park Service via AP)
