www.ReviewJournal.com
On August 20, 2023 Tropical Storm Hilary dropped more than a year’s worth of rain (2.2 inches) through Death Valley National Park. According to park ranger Matthew Lamar, “we have these hard, rocky areas — there’s nothing to absorb that water, and so it comes off the mountains, into the canyons and through the washes and drainages and up into the infrastructure.”
Water from the storm displaced heavy rocks and undercut roadways such as State Route 190 where large portions of the highway lay in crumbles. Damaged areas include a 1,500 foot stretch of roadway near Towne Pass that “washed away” and a 40 foot wide Arizona Crossing that is gone.
The cost of repairs are estimated at $6 million just for State Route 190 and a part of State Route 136. Up to this point only 900 of the 1,400 roadways have been accessed.