The National Weather Service has issued a flash flood watch for late Sunday afternoon through just after midnight for the Whitewater and Eagle Creek fire burn areas.
Heavy rain can trigger landslides and debris flows in steep terrain, and the risk is higher in burn areas,” says Bill Burns, engineering geologist at the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries. “Be aware of the landslide hazard, and avoid burn areas.”
The watch includes Santiam Pass, Government Camp, Detroit, Corbett, Rooster Rock, Multnomah Falls, Cascade Locks, Hood River, North Bonneville, Stevenson, Carson, and Underwood.
Find a map of the watch area and latest information here: http://www.weather.gov/pqr/
Debris flows are rapidly moving, extremely destructive landslides. They can contain boulders and logs transported in a fast-moving soil and water slurry down steep hillsides and through narrow canyons. They can easily travel a mile or more. A debris flow moves faster than a person can run.
People, structures and roads located below steep slopes in canyons and near the mouths of canyons may be at serious risk. Extreme caution should be used when traveling.
According to DOGAMI, hazardous areas can include:
– Bases of steep hillsides.
– Road cuts or other areas where slopes of hills have been excavated or over-steepened.
– Places where slides or debris flows have occurred in the past.
– Canyon bottoms, stream channels, and areas of rock and soil accumulation at the outlets of canyons.
For more landslide and debris flow information: http://bit.ly/landslidehazards