MAYER DIGS OUT AFTER FLOOD
Mud, debris overwhelm trailers in town scarred by fire
MAYER — Residents in two trailer parks were cleaning up after taking the brunt of the damage from a fast-developing and completely unexpected flash flood in this small Yavapai County community.
As they shoveled away mud and swept up water, they couldn’t help but look over their shoulders. Yavapai County officials expressed concern as well.
Would future storm clouds wreak even more havoc on the community of 1,000, already reeling from the effects of the Goodwin Fire? Could thunderstorms pounding on areas scarred from that summer wildfire bring even more danger?
Homes at Stagecoach Mobile Village and Chimney Ranch Mobile Home Park were damaged as a flash flood along Big Bug Creek Wednesday night transformed dirt
roads into debris-strewn mud traps.
The park’s manager, Tiffany Peterson, said those in the community were cleaning up and taking stock. Water had seeped into her trailer and got into the subfloor, which Peterson said would have to be replaced.
Peterson’s main concern was what might happen next — the next time water flows in from the north and the next time Big Bug Creek overflows.
“We’re not going to be able to reduce the damage right now,” Peterson said. “This is bad. I mean, the flood has nowhere to go.”
Tiffany’s husband, Jerry Peterson, did deliver some good news, saying the flooding hadn’t damaged their water and septic lines.
Both were unsure whether their insurance covered flood damage.
Michael McGhee, an assistant chief for Mayer Fire District, said a floodsensor warning system didn’t pick up on the severity of the water flows at Stagecoach Mobile Village, another trailer park in Mayer.
“It didn’t look like it was going to be a problem,” McGhee said. “The warning system told us we had flows, but the system wasn’t able to predict that we were going to have a 15-foot wall of water hitting Mayer.”
He did, however, know why the flood was as bad as it was — the scar left behind by the Goodwin Fire.
That fire, which burned north of Mayer, started in late June and burned almost 30,000 acres before it was contained earlier this month. It forced thousands of residents and campers to evacuate Mayer and surrounding areas.
Without trees or vegetation to stop some of it in the burned areas, most of the water went crashing through unimpeded as it headed south.
McGhee said the flood didn’t kill anyone, and he knew of only two people transported via ambulance — a fact he credited to God.
Patty Deangelis, a new resident who moved into the trailer park about a week ago, also blamed the Goodwin Fire for the extensive damage.
“There’s nothing stopping the water flow,” Deangelis said. “Nothing.”
Deangelis said she would stay in the park despite the flood damage. She can’t afford to move, she said.
McGhee said that fire district and county officials are working on a plan to handle any future floods but conceded that evacuating people was the most they could do right now.
Given the weather, he said there was a good chance trailer-park residents would have to evacuate again soon.
Tom Thurman, Yavapai County Board of Supervisors chairman, estimated the flood caused well over $1 million in property damage.
Thurman said he has requested that Gov. Doug Ducey declare a state of emergency for the entire county for the rest of the monsoon season because of the wildfire scar.
Doing so could provide additional resources.
Thurman said Yavapai County Sheriff Scott Mascher has been in contact with Ducey’s staff, and both he and Mascher anticipate the governor’s signature.
Mayer is 27 miles southeast of Prescott, a community of small hills and homes built along curvy roads. It hugs State Route 69, with its welcome sign asking travelers to slow down and enjoy the sights.
Scott Nystrom, whose son lives in the Stagecoach Mobile Village, said the flood damage was made worse because two 10-foot trailers were caught underneath a nearby bridge.
Water built up behind them until the trailers exploded from the pressure.
“I don’t know how they (residents) got out,” McGhee said. “But they were able to get out and get up the side of the mountain, and our crews were able to bring them out.”
Deputy Chief Brain Kotsur of Mesa Fire and Medical and a colleague captured the flood’s flow and damage with a drone. Kotsur said the drone’s camera is equipped with thermal imaging, allowing them to check for bodies within the murky depths. None was found. The Red Cross has set up a shelter at Mayer High School for evacuees needing a place to go.