Dixie State Student Apartments Flood Before First Day Of Classes
Aug 24, 2020, 6:01 PM | Updated: Dec 19, 2022, 11:52 pm
ST. GEORGE, Utah – Some students at Dixie State University had a difficult first day of school after several apartments flooded late Sunday night.
A flash flood warning was issued for St. George and surrounding areas Sunday, and emergency services reported downed power lines and sinkholes.
Megan Hurst said the flooding to her apartment came suddenly and quickly.
“It happened within 10 or 15 minutes,” she said. “It had been raining all night, and then it just started flooding from our front door.”
Hurst said she and her roommates grabbed what they could, but they didn’t have much time before water levels reached up to the doorknobs.
“We were just focused on unplugging everything,” Hurst explained. “I grabbed a pillow, blanket, toothbrush, and a laptop. That’s about all I could really grab and everything else is destroyed.”
Several other apartments on the first level of the Red Mountain apartment complex, just across the street from Dixie State University, flooded too.
Hurst, who’s originally from Lehi, said she worked two jobs over the summer to save up enough money for what she would need to start her college career. Now most of that is gone.
I had the opportunity to visit today with @CityofStgeorge officials to survey the damage caused by severe thunderstorms. Response teams have done a tremendous job responding to the flooding and enabling roads to be reopened. #utwx pic.twitter.com/fz6Mb7AfQj
— Gary R. Herbert (@GovHerbert) August 24, 2020
“Everyone was helping us out,” Hurst said. “All the upper-floors, they came down and they were helping us grab stuff and they offered us a place to stay. Everyone slept on air mattresses last night.”
Hurst didn’t have much time to get to her first day of classes Monday.
She said she’s still working out where she’ll stay, and what to do next. She’ll be with a friend in the area for the time being, but doesn’t know when their apartment will be available again.
“We don’t think our insurance covers floods, so we are just really taking it day by day,” Hurst said. “It was really crazy last night. We were all just sticking by each other. Everyone was being so helpful.”