Water Woes: Flooding creates state of emergency across much of the Navajo Nation
Line breaks a headache for residents, NTUA

Church Rock residents watch flood waters run under the bridge on the road to the chapter house while they wait for the road to clear enough for them to be able to drive on it. [Photo by John A. Bowersmith/Independent]

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

Ausitn Bahe carries his and his brother's shoes down a street in Church Rock Wednesday. Heavy rains in the mesas around Church Rock caused flooding that coated the streets with mud and made them impassable. [Photo by John A. Bowersmith/Independent]

WINDOW ROCK — Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink seems to be the order of the day for Navajo Tribal Utility Authority customers in central, western and northern parts of the Navajo Nation.

Regional flash flooding is causing to breaks in major NTUA water lines, causing outages in a number of tribal communities, according to Denise Becenti, public affairs officer for NTUA.

Becenti said NTUA district offices have been receiving calls daily from customers reporting water outages. Depending on the location of the water line break, anywhere from five to 20 homes have been affected at any one time by the outages, which have lasted from several hours to overnight.

"The rushing waters put tremendous pressure on our water lines, causing them to break," said Wilfred Brown, NTUA Chinle District field superintendent. "In some cases, we repaired the water line break and overnight, another flash flood broke the same water line."

Brown said NTUA is working hard to take care of the outages. "Believe me, we are just as frustrated as customers," he said.

NTUA is asking its customers to bear with them as they work to correct the problems, Becenti said.

Water lines and water systems in Ganado, Iyanbito, Crownpoint, Twin Lakes, Tohlakai, Ya-ta-hey, Kayenta, Round Rock, Smoke Signal, Blue Gap, Low Mountain, Burnt Corn, Lukachukai, Cudeii, Sheepsprings, Two Grey Hills, Rock Point and Cameron all have been affected since heavy rains began last week.

NTUA recently provided help in the form of a 5,000 gallon water tanker to Sage Memorial Hospital in Ganado after its water supply became contaminated by E. coli and required a week-long chlorine flush.

Navajo Mountain also needed assistance after a spring-fed reservoir used by the community was contaminated by chemicals used to douse a month-long fire that kept fire crews busy from June 10 through mid-July. Both communities operate water systems independent of NTUA.

Brown said, "Our goal is to provide safe, reliable water services; however, sometimes we have to remember the power of Mother Nature. We hope that customers can understand this and know that we are working to fix the water line breaks and take care of the outages just as soon as they happen."

NTUA will notify customers of water outages and repairs through regional radio announcements, according to Becenti.

The tribal utility has been working closely with Navajo Emergency Management and has been fielding requests for assistance, depending on available resources.

The Commission on Emergency Management declared a state of emergency Monday due to flash flooding, according to Selena Manychildren, public information officer for the Department of Emergency Management.

She said it is recommended that all branches of the Navajo Nation begin planning their respective emergency responses and implementing the use of emergency funds associated with those plans.

The Department of Public Safety in Window Rock has activated its Emergency Operations Center. Six incident command posts have been up in the communities of Rock Point, Black Mesa, Dilkon, Alamo, Wide Ruins and Pinon. Others will be established as needed.

Heavy rains have washed out roads and caused power outages.

Delegate Ray Berchman (Oak Springs/St. Michaels) said Tuesday that water overflowed a culvert Monday evening and flooded the roadway near Oak Springs Chapter, causing traffic delays as motorists waited for the floodwaters to recede.

Manychildren said the public is asked to be on alert, especially those living in floodplains, and are advised to monitor neighbors who might need assistance. Community Health Representatives and chapters are assisting with assessments and providing relief.

Sand bags are available upon request from the Department of Emergency Management, (928) 871-6892.

Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. said, "We've been blessed with much-needed moisture and rainfall now that the monsoon season is here, but it comes with flooding of washes and our roads, and we have to take measures to help those families who become stranded to ensure everyone remains safe."

Fort Defiance Delegate Harold Wauneka said Tuesday that the ongoing weather emergency is one reason the Navajo Nation Council needs to refrain from raiding the Undesignated, Unreserved Fund. The $100,000 or so remaining after Monday's council session probably will be needed to cover expenses associated with the emergency, he said.

Alamo Chapter continues to have water problems after a flash flood washed out the water system that fed the north side of the community, according to Manychildren. Tachee/Blue Gap reported a waterline washout on Monday.

Flash flooding stranded 16 families in Rock Point, three families in Black Mesa, and one family in Dilkon. Two people in a vehicle were caught in flood waters in Wide Ruins, Manychildren said, while one family got on top of its house Monday evening to escape the flooding.

Herman Shorty, Emergency Management Commission chairman, said the state of emergency declaration is the first step in allowing the Bureau of Indian Affairs Roads Department, Navajo and Apache counties, and the states to extend emergency funding to the tribe.