HELENA — Flash flooding in the Horse Gulch burn scar area caused Riverside Campground to close after 12 camper vehicles got stranded Wednesday night.
"In a normal area where that hadn't burned, the trees and grass would have absorbed that, and they wouldn't have had that flood. But in this case and any case where there has been a fire, be aware that if you're downstream or could be downstream from a fire, pick the highest camp spot," said Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton.
Water pushed burnt trees and debris down Jimtown Road, and a little after 6 p.m., Lewis and Clark County's dispatch received a call from someone at Riverside Campground below the Canyon Ferry Dam.
They said the campground was flooding, and people were stranded.
"I suspect they thought the rain would move away and they'd be fine. That's what most of use would do. But it didn't. It rained significantly with nothing to absorb it. They were afraid," Dutton said.
Sheriff Dutton said his office, the Tri-Lakes Fire Department, and Lewis and Clark Search and Rescue responded.
According to Dutton, roughly 12 camper vehicles could not leave because of the flooding, and in "some cases, the water was rising on their campers," reaching up to the vehicle's door.
Dutton said deputies reported water reaching three feet in some places.
"There was very little time to react. The people that were camping, what they didn't do was panic. They were afraid, but they didn't panic. Panic would've caused them to drive right in the stream, which would have let them get caught in that current and go right out into the river. They would have probably perished," said Dutton.
After responding officers contacted those stranded and the water subsided, Dutton says most campers "were able to drive out through the mud and debris."
No people were injured, and no property was destroyed.
The Bureau of Reclamation closed the riverside campground due to the debris left over from the flooding, and Dutton said it could take until spring to reopen it.
Preparing for something like this is almost impossible, according to Dutton.
"If there was a huge population base there, you could put barriers there, but that's almost cost-prohibitive because you don't know that it's going to rain," said Dutton.
Jimtown Road reopened Thursday late afternoon after crews worked the day clearing debris and repairing damage. There is still a flash flood warning for the area and Magpie Gulch.
