Trapped visitors airlifted to safety after flash floods in national park, Utah cops say

Severe flash flooding blocked roads at a national park in Utah, trapping dozens of visitors, a sheriff’s office said.

About 60 people waited for roads to be cleared on Thursday, June 23, at the Capitol Reef National Park after rain drenched the area, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said.

The National Weather Service had issued a flash flood warning that included the park from about 11 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Some visitors needed to be airlifted to safety after a roadway washed out to the Capitol Gorge area within the park, deputies said.

Those people were placed in a parking lot where roads were also unpassable. About 60 people waited in the lot and nearly had to spend the night there, the sheriff’s office said, but park rangers were able to clear the roads and direct guests to nearby motels.

No injuries were reported except for some cuts, deputies said.

There were seven to eight parked cars still trapped in the flooded areas, deputies said at the time of their news release.

The sheriff’s office can be reached at 435-836-1308 for more information.

Tourist dies after vanishing in river as friends chase after him, Wyoming rescuers say

Tourists find man dead 2 miles from car in 123-degree Death Valley heat, rangers say

18-year-old drowns saving family member struggling in Utah reservoir, officials say