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Video captures flash flood in Johnson Canyon

Posted at 3:24 PM, Jul 29, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-29 17:24:38-04

Recent rain brought flash flood watches and warnings to portions of Utah this week, and one flash flood in Johnson Canyon was captured on camera.

David Rankin predicts, chases and captures flash floods on video, and his latest footage shows a flash flood from Friday carrying water and debris. Rankin states heavy rain caused a large flash flood to overwhelm a wash at the top of the canyon, causing flooding out on a nearby road.

Rankin points out that flash floods earn their name by arriving quickly and with signs that may not be visible to the naked eye. He said radar indicated more than 3 inches of water fell in the area north of the canyon in an hour, creating “a monster.”

“You can see the sun is shining, birds are chirping, if you just rolled up in here to go on a hike or something you would have no idea there is a wall of water coming down this wash right now,” Rankin says in the video.

The canyon is accessed via Johnson Canyon Road, which begins approximately 9 miles east of Kanab in Kane County via US-89.

Flash flood warnings remain in effect for Washington and Kane counties through Saturday evening.