The mega-storm cell that hit the Moapa/Glendale area on Monday, September 8 caused havoc to transportation infrastructure in the greater Moapa Valley communities and throughout the region last week.
Runoff from Weiser Wash raged across Interstate 15 just south of exit 93 and destroyed a two-mile stretch of the arterial highway, taking out much of both the northbound and southbound lanes. In addition to carrying chunks of concrete and asphalt down the wash, the flood waters dug a trench in the highway median which was as deep as 15 feet in some places. Thus, the interstate was completely closed for a 20 mile stretch between the Valley of Fire offramp and Logandale/Overton exit 93. The closure remained in effect until Friday afternoon when a single lane in each direction was re-opened.
Interstate travel was even more restricted for commercial traffic. Semi-truck traffic was rerouted the long way around. Truck drivers were forced to travel north at U.S. Highway 93, mainly along two-lane highways through Alamo, Caliente, Panaca and eventually reconnecting back to I-15 at Cedar City, Utah. This caused gridlock in rural areas along that route. But the approximately 140 mile stretch of I-15 between U.S. 93 and Cedar City went relatively quiet; with very few big rig trucks on the road.
It was a little easier for drivers of passenger vehicles. That traffic was routed to the Valley of Fire roadway and through downtown Overton. By Tuesday afternoon, both Valley of Fire State Park and Lake Mead National Recreation Area had announced that they would waive all fees into the parks to facilitate the added traffic caused by the closure.
Bitter-sweet Windfall For Downtown
The detour brought heavy traffic volume on to State Highway 169 through the lower Moapa Valley. Local merchants reported doing a brisk busineess during that time.
“We’ve seen a lot of extra business compared to normal,” said Tish Cook of Inside Scoop in Overton. “The traffic has been so busy sometimes that you can’t even walk across the street downtown.”
But that increased business was bittersweet, Cook said.
“A good deal of it has been locals that were flooded and don’t have anyplace to prepare food,” she said. “So while it’s nice to have the activity downtown, it was for the wrong reasons. I’d give it all back if we could not have the flooded neighbors.”
Lin’s Marketplace manager Darin Leach, who reported that the store had also done excellent business during the detour, expressed similar sentiments.
“Business has been slow all summer and we all look forward to the fall when things start moving again,” Leach said. “But this is not the way you want to see it turn around.”
“I guess if local business owners are going to pray for better business conditions, we have to be very specific in what we are praying for,” Leach said with a smile.
Local Commuter Woes
All the troubles for regional travellers in making the detour had little to compare with the severe inconvenience put to local motorists trying to get from one end of the community to another for their daily routines. With no alternative surface street access between Moapa and Logandale, most of those routines were completely up-ended.
Moapa residents looking to make a grocery shopping trip to Overton faced nearly a full day’s journey to get there and get back. For most of the week, Moapa residents accessed the southbound lanes of I-15 at exit 90 in Moapa. They could then make it to Overton within about 45 minutes by way of the Valley of Fire road. But on the return trip, all traffic arriving at the Valley of Fire exit was being diverted south; even local traffic.
From there folks had to travel to exit 64 near Apex, travel north on U.S. Highway 93 to Coyote Springs, and then take the 168 back down into Moapa. Many residents reported that it was a return journey of about two-and-a-half hours, if traffic was good.
Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) officials said that the northbound closure for local traffic was due to concerns about the safety of the three local exits at Hidden Valley, Moapa and Glendale.
“Our crews have closely evaluated exits 88, 90 and 91 and have determined that there is no safe way to open those exits at this time,” said NDOT spokesman Meg Ragonese in a phone interview with the PROGRESS on Thursday afternoon.
But on Friday evening, when the I-15 was re-opened again, the Moapa and Glendale exits were immediately opened as well.
Damage To Moapa Surface Roads
To make matters worse, many of the surface streets and highways in the Moapa area were severely damaged by floods. This made travel in those areas slow and dangerous.
Flood waters had created a waterfall in several places over Henrie Road in Moapa. This eroded and undercut the roadway bringing it down to one lane only in some spots. This made it difficult for those in the large neighborhood to the north to access the highway and get out of the area.
In addition, State Highway 168 was partially eroded by flood waters in several areas. Perhaps, the worst of these was in a wash just west of where the highway crosses the railroad tracks. This threatened to make access difficult for residents living in Warm Springs, the Lytle Ranch neighborhood and the Moapa River Indian Reservation.
Stuck At School
All of these transportation pitfalls created a special dilemma for area students who had to cross the great divide in order to get to and from school.
When the storm hit on Monday, the school day was not yet over. So a large number of students and teachers ended up stranded at Ute Perkins Elementary School in Moapa waiting for flood waters to recede enough to allow for safe transit home. It was a long wait; especially after the power went out at around 3:30 p.m.
“It was a tough position (for staff and students) to be in,” said Moapa resident Leslie May, a parent of students who were stranded at the school. “But the staff was amazing. They did everything that they could to make the kids comfortable. They had water, food and things for the kids to do.”
Still it was a traumatic experience for some of the kids. May had a son in kindergarten who was among those stranded in the dark school.
“He is pretty young and he had a tough time,” May said. “Even now he is still just a little bit afraid to go back. And you can definitely understand that.”
It wasn’t until later in the evening before the flood had receded to the point that kids could be transported home. A number of the students, attending the school from the lower valley, had a longer journey home through the Valley of Fire. Unfortunately, park officials in coordination with NDOT had made the decision to close the park to traffic that night.
The bus was reportedly held up for about 45 minutes at the gate of the State Park while officials were contacted to approve its passage through the park with an escort. The children did not arrive home until about 11:00 p.m.
But even that was better than the 34 Moapa kids who were stuck at the Mack Lyon Middle School without a way home. Lyon teachers and administrators gathered these students and went with them to Grant Bowler Elementary School in Logandale. Here they waited for word on whether they would be able to return home. While waiting, the kids were entertained for a time by Bowler principal Shawna Jessen who played the guitar and sang with the students.
Finally, when it became clear that transportation home was not an option, the students were moved next door to the Fine Arts Building at the Clark County Fairgrounds. There local Parks and Rec staffers made the group comfortable providing a generator for electricity, games for the kids to play, and a relatively comfortable place to sleep. Bedding was provided by members of the community coordinated by the LDS Logandale 2nd Ward.
Dinner was provided to the students by Lin’s Marketplace in Overton. The students were able to sleep comfortably through the night. Throughout the experience, the kids were supervised, and attended to, by administrators and teachers of the school.
Early the next morning, the students boarded vans and were escorted by Metro police officers across the less damaged portions of I-15 back to their homes.
“I want to thank the staff at Mack Lyon Middle School who pitched in to be with our students,” said Lyon vice principal Hal Mortensen in a statement. “It is the outpouring of love and concern from everyone that made this crisis a positive experience for everyone. It is great to be in Moapa Valley!”
Schools Closed
All of the Moapa Valley schools were closed on Tuesday. Schools in the lower valley re-opened as usual on Wednesday. But bus transportation was still not available for Moapa kids going to the middle and high schools in Overton.
Ute Perkins Elementary did not re-open until Thursday. But on that day, there was still no bus transportation available to the school.
Moapa parents expressed concerns about schools opening without adequate transportation in place for getting all kids to school.
“It doesn’t seem like you should open the schools until you have the ability to have buses get to the kids,” said Moapa parent Tiffany Frederick. “If the road isn’t safe for a bus, it’s probably not safe for a lot of cars with parents taking their kids to school.”
Frederick has a daughter who just started middle school in Overton this year. She was concerned about the material that her daughter would be missing on the days she was unable to get her to school. But she emphasized that the school staff had been very flexible with the absent kids.
“I was really worried about what she was missing,” Frederick said. “But then we got a call from Ms. Lewis (Lyon math teacher). She just let my daughter know that the teachers were going to work with her and that she wouldn’t miss anything and wouldn’t be overloaded with homework when she got back. She was very sincere and kind and it came as such a relief to us.”
On Thursday afternoon, Clark County School District Trustee Chris Garvey held a meeting with parents in Moapa to discuss their concerns. With her came CCSD Transportation Field Supervisor Ron Cortez.
At the meeting parents were assured that bus transportation would resume on the following day.
“They were very helpful and sympathetic to our concerns,” said Leslie May. “And they reassured us that our kids would be given more than enough time to make up their missed work.”
All children were able to receive transportation to school on Friday.
