‘Hit hard’: San Juan County evacuees endure long wait for flood recovery

The post ‘Hit hard’: San Juan County evacuees endure long wait for flood recovery appeared first on Searchlight New Mexico.

BLOOMFIELD — Chris Bloom learned neighbors upstream had begun evacuating early one morning last week, but no word had reached him or his parents downriver.

“Nobody called, so we just got hit hard,” he said.

He and his family have been living in a donated camper outside a temporary shelter for evacuees for over a week. His parents have been staying inside, sleeping on cots. They are among dozens of displaced families receiving support at the San Juan County Fairgrounds near Farmington while waiting for floodwaters to recede.

Many of their homes, already destroyed in last week’s rounds of flooding, were swamped again as the San Juan River breached its banks Monday following weekend storms.

Volunteer Rebecca Havens said the shelter established by the American Red Cross at the fairgrounds saw about 180 people pour in by late Friday night. There were 192 people in the shelter Monday, some filtering in and out.

“We’ve had a lot of people come in over the last 24 hours,” she said Monday. “People are still pretty emotional, still pretty traumatized from what happened last week.”

‘Terrible losing everything’

Visiting his parents’ property in Bloomfield on Monday afternoon, Bloom gestured toward the plywood-covered windows. “All the debris that came around broke the windows, so we came back and boarded up the windows,” he said.

Bloom, 40, had arrived in Bloomfield with his wife and boys, ages 8 and 4, just a few weeks ago to help his parents, who have lived in the area for nearly a decade. The family, who live in Delta, Colo., were staying in a new camper on his parents’ property, behind their mobile home, which sits just 100 yards from the San Juan River.

“That morning we woke up, and as we’re right off the river, the water was coming right up to the house,” he said, referring to flooding that hit Oct. 27.

It was “chaos” getting his own family and his elderly parents out of danger, he added.

The home is now covered in a thick layer of mud, and four dogs are trapped inside. Bloom and his family have been going to feed them when they can access the house. His camper, with about a foot of mud on the floor, is tilted slightly on its side. Debris, vehicles, and equipment are strewn about the property, left by intense floodwaters.

Over the weekend, more floodwater seeped into the home.

His neighbors’ trucks sit half-submerged in water, with the San Juan River still rushing nearby.

Bloom said he has no idea when the family will be able to move back in and described the experience as “miserable.”

“It’s terrible losing everything,” he said.

Neither he nor his parents had ever seen flooding like this.

The Blooms’ home in Colorado also was damaged by recent storms. They plan to stay in New Mexico to help Chris Bloom’s parents rebuild.

‘Don’t lose that fire to help’

Some people arrived at the evacuation shelter “soaked to the bone,” Havens said, adding there’s still plenty of room for people in need.

Makeshift rooms were set up inside with curtains, cots and blankets. Volunteers were offering food, medical supplies and resources for children, including an area where kids could play games and find toys.

On Halloween, Havens said, the Red Cross and local volunteers set up a pumpkin-painting contest for children.

The volunteers also made accommodations for pets, which were kept in small kennels next to their owners, and set up a shelter for livestock.

San Juan County Community Health and Social Services Director Megan Cullip said support from the community has been pouring in.

“I hope we maintain this level of drive to help our neighbors,” Cullip said. “Don’t lose that fire to help — this is a long-term process.”

Cullip said officials were still unaware of the full extent of the damage the floodwaters have caused in the county.

“This will be a months-long process,” she said.

Victoria Traxler is an environment and national labs reporter for The New Mexican.

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