CANYON FERRY — The Canyon Ferry area received a flash flood warning Wednesday at the Horse Gulch burn scar, but this wasn’t the first time the community’s been put on alert.
Lewis and Clark County floodplain administrator Worby McNamee says the area around Riverside Campground gets multiple alerts a year for potential flash flooding.
Since the Horse Gulch Fire in 2024, multiple floods have swept through the landscape, leaving plenty of damage in their path, and McNamee doesn’t expect it to slow down.
Burn scar areas are very susceptible to debris flows and runoff,” McNamee continued, “the area is gonna see some danger for potentially the next five or so years.”
Even without major flooding, the area still sees debris flow and road washouts from thunderstorm runoff, especially over the summer.
Burn scar areas tend to have a higher risk of flooding for a few reasons. The soil could fail to absorb water, and it’s harder to predict where runoff will flow with limited obstacles on the hillsides.
When the National Weather Service issues the flash flood warning, we kind of hold our breath to see which of the areas it's gonna be funneling down,” McNamee said.
However, the county is doing what they can to limit the risk. While they aren’t able to seed new plants on the Forest Service-owned land, they’re taking steps to better track when a flood might happen.
“We have a rain gauge out there,” McNamee said. “The rain gauge helps us better predict when those flood events could occur based on the amount of rain in that area.”
According to MTN meteorologist Curtis Grevenitz, a heavy rainfall in a shorter window of time can trigger flooding.
For those out recreating in a flood zone, officials recommend taking extra precautions, keeping phone flooding alerts on, and planning an evacuation route so you don’t get swept away.
Officials remind Montanans to keep an eye out for flash flood watches and warnings, and never to drive through flooded roads.
