What: Flooding in Flagstaff from heavy rain in late October and the weekend of November 1, 2026, and the City's emergency response, damage assessment and recovery.
Where it stands: At the November 3 Council meeting the emergency manager reported that the flooding followed an earlier emergency declared nine days before, that damage assessments were under way on the south side, that a public damage-reporting form was live on the City website, and that only one road (Blackbird Roost) remained soft-closed. Staff said federal reimbursement is expected to be at best 75/25.
Next: Continued damage assessments, cleanup of culverts and storm drains (staff said it will be a long process), reimbursement paperwork, and a Council request for a presentation on flood mitigation work already done along the Rio de Flag.
Details
Built from the YouTube auto-generated captions of the November 3 Council meeting; auto-captions are imperfect, so figures may be misheard.
Rainfall and scale: staff cited the wettest fall on record, about 3.4 inches in 24 hours at the airport (roughly a 25-year event, made worse by saturated soil), and a 100-year event at Munds Park. Staff said the 1993 flood was larger.
Upper Lake Mary rose from 16% of capacity in September to 76% over the weekend, about 3 billion gallons.
Response: multiple swift-water rescues, about 600 police calls in a 12-hour shift (roughly double normal), a full public works staff recall, mutual aid to Winslow, and two confirmed deaths. The potable water system stayed operational; there were wastewater and stormwater impacts.
Flood control: staff said the Schultz basins, Parkway basins, Killip basins and The Wedge worked as intended. Staff said the burn scars were not a major factor in this event.
Public guidance: stay out of floodwater (contamination), document damage, check the credentials of restoration contractors, and contact insurers.
Rio de Flag project: design is under final review with the Army Corps of Engineers and BNSF, agency agreements are with legal counsel and expected at Council within weeks, and the lower reach construction advertisement is expected before December 31 with construction starting summer 2027. See BNSF Property Purchase and Rio de Flag Overpass.
City manager's update: emergency manager briefing, drone footage, Q&A with the water services and stormwater staff; Council thanked responders and asked for a presentation on flood mitigation already completed along the Rio de Flag.