Residents Stack Sandbags, Watch Sky For Rain

ELK RIDGE, Utah – It takes years for good teams to come together and gel as one.

But the team working hard along Loafer Canyon Road in Elk Ridge Tuesday night only had a few hours.

Tyler Veach

“It’s hard grueling work. It takes a lot of energy and a lot of effort,” said Tyler Veach.

Veach was one of the many volunteers who helped line sandbags around homes and along the road.

Veach doesn’t live on this particular road, but with rain storms predicted and flooding almost certain here, it doesn’t matter who lives where. They’re all neighbors.

Sandbags on a truck

“I know how much my home means to me, and so helping other people protect their homes is important,” said Veach, as he caught another sandbag from the back of a truck and placed it on top of another.

Floods usually follow fires, and with as big as the Pole Creek and Bald Mountain fires were that burned the mountainside in the area last month, the concern is the flooding is going to be devastating.

Sandbags

That’s why Utah Governor Gary Herbert activated the Utah National Guard. About 200 soldiers helped fill and stack sandbags.

“We’re trying to get about 12,000 sandbags,” said Lt. Col. Steve Brenchley with the Utah National Guard. “Really what we’re trying to do today is prepare for the storm that’s going to come tonight.”

You can’t blame residents for being a little nervous.

Filling sandbags

“If had been a light rain, we could handle it. If it’s going to be as heavy as they say, it’s going to be a mess,” said Lee Elmer, who was one of the volunteers filling sandbags at a park in Payson.

However, that’s where preparation and good teamwork come in. Because, even though it is a lot of work, for many residents, they feel like they just can’t sit there and do nothing.

“I love doing things like this, being outside, being active and engaged,” said Veach, as he caught another sandbag and stacked it on top of another.