(KTNV) — This year’s monsoon is causing major problems at Death Valley National Park.
Roads were destroyed and cars are still stuck in the mud after Friday’s storm swept through the California desert. At Mud Canyon in Death Valley, intense rain caused a road to collapse, leaving an untold amount of damage.
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Matthew Lamar, a park ranger at Death Valley National Park said, "When you live in a National Park you get to see nature in all its glory, and sometimes it could be violent."
Monsoon left its mark on Death Valley, California on Friday with extreme rain pounding the desert and flooding roads, causing damaging mudslides.
"We experienced 1.46 inches of rain which may be the second most we ever had in a 24-hour period and in a desert when you get that level of rain it can be a dynamic event,” Lamar said.
Rain reportedly caused a lot of destruction in Mud Canyon, washing away parts of the road about an hour from the entrance of Death Valley National Park.
"You can see obviously where some of the roads were destroyed,” Lamar said. “If you go further there are sections where there is no road at all."
At The Inn at Death Valley, several guests found their vehicles stuck in the mud.
Lamar says park rangers are keeping an eye on historical landmarks like Scotty’s Castle. The castle is only now recovering after a fire destroyed the historic garage and an outbuilding in 2021. Prior to that, the historic district was closed for repairs after extensive flooding in 2015.
"It has taken us a while to get up there it does look like it was not too much damage done in that area but they are still doing the assessment in the northern ends of the park,” Lamar said.
Ranger Lamar says clean-up from Friday’s storm is still underway, and visitors should check the park’s website for road closure updates.
Lamar also says no injuries were reported.
Until a safety assessment is made by the National Park Service, certain areas in Death Valley will remain closed.
