Coconino County spends $60 million in post wildfire flood prevention ahead of monsoon season
FLAGSTAFF, AZ (AZFamily) — Monsoon season is officially here, which has hit the high country especially hard in previous years, especially after a fire.
Coconino County has spent tens of millions of dollars in post-wildfire flood prevention and that construction will soon be put to the test.
Rob Wilson lives in the Timberline neighborhood east of Flagstaff. In 2022 they were hit with the Tunnel and Pipeline Fires. A few months later the monsoons came.
“All the water had to come down off the mountain and we watched it go first under our driveway and then over the top and erode things away,” Wilson said. “You know I’ve rafted the Colorado River and there were times the flood almost looked like Colorado River quantities of water.”
In 2022 there were 45 major flood events due to monsoon rains on burn scars.
“It was especially difficult and at one point you figure what are we supposed to do to keep up with all of this,” Wilson said.
But now with the help of federal funding Coconino Flood Control District has spent $60 million on flood mitigation projects
“The wildfire and post-wildfire flooding are the top two safety threats to Coconino Count,” Supervisor Judy Begay said. “Really dealt with a lot that have lived in this area of course the wildlife too. And these are sacred places too for Native Americans.”
They’ve completed projects on 7 flood corridors, projects designed to divert floodwaters away from neighborhoods. This includes one of the largest - the Copeland flood corridor which is right behind Wilson’s home.
“We’re happy to see that all the folks that had to work together to make this happen have been able to do that and help protect my neighborhood from the flooding,” he said.
These new and improved corridors will be able to carry 2,000 acre-feet of water per second - which is three times greater and the Verde River flow.
Something Begay said they are very proud of.
“We like to make sure that people are safe and that their homes aren’t threatened and wildlife isn’t threatened. And we like to be able go address that so you know we don’t have to go through the same thing again.
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