Article author:
Associated Press
Death Valley National Park, California (AP) — The highway to Death Valley National Park will open next week as crews clean up after record-breaking rains have damaged the roads and clogged them with mud and rocks. will remain closed until and debris.
A flash flood hit the park last week, trapping hundreds of guests and partially submerging about 60 cars and trucks in mud. No injuries have been reported.
The California Department of Transportation said about 30 miles (48 kilometers) of California Route 190 were partially or completely filled with debris and about 20 miles (32 kilometers) were cleared.
However, the route from Trona Wild Rose Road/Panaminto Valley Road to State Route 127 at Death Valley Junction will remain closed until at least August 17. , he said in a Caltrans statement.
"Our crews continue to clear debris. They are looking at several damaged highways where the shoulder is completely missing, the asphalt is damaged and the road is undercut. We found the section,” said Ryan Dermody, Caltrans District 9 Director.
Some of the collected debris will be used to fill eroded shoulders, Caltrans said.
Near the California-Nevada border, the park has more than 1,000 miles (1,609 kilometers) of roads covering 3.4 million acres (1.3 million hectares).
Last Friday's record rainfall in the Furnace Creek area brought him 1.46 inches (3.71 centimeters) of rain. That's about 75% of what the region typically gets in a year and more than the record set for the entire month of August.
Since 1936, only April 15, 1988, has had more rain, with 1.47 inches (3.73 cm), park officials said.
