From Deseret News archives:
All eyes on skies and Utah hillsides
A couple of scientists at the Utah Geological Survey are concerned just about the next few weeks.
The immediate calendar will determine the risk Utah residents face for landslides and debris flows like the slide at Cedar Hills at the end of April and larger flows such as the Thistle Junction landslide in 1983 that blocked the Spanish Fork River and flooded the small town.
The rest of May and the first few weeks of June are a critical melt window for the snowpack in Utah, which is above average in many places throughout the state, but especially in southern Utah, where floods and landslides have already threatened the breathtaking landscape and communities. The longer the weather stays cool, the more rapidly it will warm later in the season, creating a steep drop in the snow levels and a substantially greater risk for floods, landslides and debris flows.
"We haven't melted a lot of snow. We've been lollygagging around here for a couple of weeks, since the middle of April," said Richard Giraud, a geologist who specializes in debris flows at the Utah Geological Survey. "That window of opportunity gets narrower and narrower."
Debris flows are like thick, muddy flash floods. Water running off snowpacks soaks the dirt underneath until it cannot hold any more water. The dirt breaks off, plunges down a slope and collects trees, rocks, boulders and anything else in its path. Usually, the flow heads for a pre-existing stream channel, but the rocks and trees in the mud clog that channel, forcing the quickly moving sediment out of the channel and into whatever is in its way including homes and people.
Fourteen deaths from debris flows in approximately 155 years are a testament to the speed and deadliness of debris flows, Giraud said.
"You have to move quick," he said.
A debris flow in Rudd Canyon in Davis County in 1983 pushed houses off their foundations and caused "a lot of damage to landscaping, patios and porches. If you have basement windows, the mud and rock flows into the basement window well, breaks out the basement window and flows into the basement of the house."
Comments
- Chargers rout Broncos, 32-3 6:34 p.m.
- Patriots defense stifles Jets 6:31 p.m.
- Find my family exploits 6:20 p.m.
- Will Oprah Winfrey fade away? 6:20 p.m.
- BYU stadium example of grass care 6:20 p.m.
- Architect is valuable when bidding 6:20 p.m.
- Lightning edge Thrashers in OT 6:19 p.m.
- 'Scroogenomics': Cut back Christmas 6:19 p.m.
- Moment of thanks at gas station 6:19 p.m.
- Single mom overwhelmed by kids 6:19 p.m.
- Glenn Beck to enter politics?
- BYU records with win
- Jazz outlast Pistons in overtime
- Cougars turn focus to dreaded rivals
- Cougars put the fun back in football
- Kirilenko heating up for the Jazz
- Former BYU professor remembered
- Wendover airfield's legacy lost?
- Police link alcohol to murder
- Utah Utes whip SDSU
- Buttars wants to limit gay rights laws
201 - Glenn Beck to enter politics?
180 - Palin plans tour stop in Utah
178 - BYU records with win
127 - Palin's book shows she's unqualified
125 - Officer cleared in Cardall Taser case
103 - BYU cuts Women's Research Inst.
100 - Jazz finally win in San Antonio
98 - Utes knock off rival Aggies
93 - Huntsman pleased with Obama
87
A little after midnight Wednesday morning, about 21 hours ago as I write...
There's a lot of reason to leave your plastic home as you shop:
will be decided by Byu's Rudy Defensive Backs. I'm betting that David Reed...
it would be awsome to watch !! a match made in in EGO-HEAVEN
I am a BYU fan so I am not exactly complaining, but can someone tell me why...
The purpose of religious law is to get us back to God. The purpose of...
for president 2012 LOL LOL i'd love to see it on a bumper sticker **...
Dems are at odds with the whole idea of what is best for the USA. Something...
until you play the Utes this weekend. Then it will only be fun for the Utes D.
lighten up. do you not have any humor? good article.
I was on the edge of my seat last year during the playoffs. That would so...
I am glad I got to be a part of a game that will go down in history. Even...



You can be the first to comment on this story.