1,000 people stranded in Death Valley National Park due to floods
Death Valley experienced unprecedented rain that led to flooding on Friday.
The flooding stranded 1,000 people in the park.
At least 60 parked cars were pushed into each other because of the floods.
Around 1,000 people were stranded in Death Valley National Park after it closed following flooding due to unprecedented rain.
The National Park Service reported that around 500 visitors and 500 staff members were unable to leave the park on Friday. According to the agency, many facilities including hotels were flooded. At the Inn at Death Valley in California, 60 cars were buried under several feet of debris.
The park got 1.46 inches of rain, nearly breaking the current record of 1.47 inches, according to NPS.
"All roads into and out of the park are currently closed and will remain closed until park staff can assess the extensiveness of the situation," NPS said.
Additionally, the floods forced dumpsters into cars, which collided with each other, NPS said. No injuries have been reported, but there were no further details on the 1,000 stranded in the park.
CNN reported that some guests left despite the floods and road closures on Friday. Abby Wines, Park public affairs officer, told CNN that "no one is stopping" visitors from leaving if they want to.
Roads still were closed Saturday afternoon, according to an update on the NPS website. The rain has stopped, but more is expected later this week. High temperatures at the park this week are over 100 degrees.
The California Department of Transportation warned that Route 190 remains closed and drivers should not attempt to "get around any closure to access the park." The agency said clean-up is underway and progress updates will be dispatched on their social media sites.
"Many roads throughout the park have been critically damaged by the storm and are unsafe to drive on," the agency said.
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