Summit County rivers placed on flood watch as water continues to rise
Apr 30, 2023, 4:31 PM | Updated: 5:22 pm
SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah — A River Flood Watch is in place for several areas in Northern Utah, including the lower Weber River at Plain City and East Canyon Creek near Jeremy Ranch, downstream to East Canyon Reservoir.
The patches of white blanketing Jeremy Ranch may look deceiving because, with summertime temperatures here, all creeks, streams, and rivers are running high.
“Our public works crews are monitoring a number of areas, especially on the west side of Summit County, because there’s a lot of snow that’s still going to come out of the mountains, and with the warm temperatures, all the creeks and streams and rivers are coming up,” said Derek Siddoway, the Director of Summit County Communications.
As of Sunday afternoon, East Canyon Creek was running high.
“The water’s expected to peak over the next 24 hours for now,” Siddoway explained.
What is typically a trickle, turned into a rushing river, nearly reaching the height of some of the bridges.
“All of our bridges are put in with regards to that 100-year high water mark,” Siddoway said.
And Summit County leaders are watching for the risk of flooding.
“Where the creek’s flowing through, most of the areas it’s getting close to coming over the banks are wetlands or the golf course,” he said.
Siddoway said roads aren’t threatened, but they are watching a bridge on Sackett Drive.
“It’s able to take the capacity just fine now, and we don’t anticipate any issues tonight, but we’re keeping an eye on it for obstructions,” he said. “That obviously changes the game when something gets into the stream or the river and dams things off.”
While some water pools on the golf course, the county said homes should be in the clear.
“Based on looking at it, there’s room for the water to go without threatening structures,” Siddoway said. “It never hurts to take precautions and get those sandbags in case you might need them.”
To learn more about the flooding in Summit County, you can visit the county’s official website..
