You are here

Storm at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area Swamps or Damages More Than a Dozen Boats

Share
Swamped houseboat.

This houseboat was one of the causalities of last weekend's sudden storm at Lake Powell. NPS photo.

The high surf resulting from Hurricane Bill's travels off the east coast last weekend got plenty of press, but an unrelated storm that hit Glen Canyon National Recreation Area with little warning offered a reminder that coastal areas aren't the only ones affected by high winds and waves.

Late in the afternoon on Saturday, August 22, personnel in the dispatch center in Page, Arizona noticed the approach of a severe storm. No weather warnings had been issued by the National Weather Service, but the dispatchers recognized the impending risk to boaters and broadcast an alert over the marine band radio channel. All boaters on Lake Powell were advised to take cover.

The brief but intense storm struck the lower end of Lake Powell at about 4:15 p.m. with winds gusting to 54 mph. Waves in Wahweap and Padre Bays on the lake reached heights of six to seven feet.

The storm was over in less than thirty minutes, but thirteen vessels, including a houseboat, were swamped by the wind and waves. Three NPS and one Utah State Parks patrol boats responded to distress calls from sixteen separate parties, and nineteen people were retrieved from locations around the lake.

There's one piece of good news from this incident: all of those who were picked up by rescue personnel were reported to be wearing life jackets, and no injuries were reported. Most of them had been able to make it to shore or shallow water on their own, but were unable to use their boats, because the vessels were swamped.

Comments

Hurricane Bob?


I wondered that too...Hurricane Bill maybe?

That is horrible what happened at Glen Canyon - thank goodness there were no injuries!


Sorry about that - and thanks for the catch. I corrected the text. Must have been that new naming series for southern hurricanes: Billy Bob.


That houseboat is the "CPR" it has that name because that is not the first time it sunk. My family had a timeshare on that boat for many years!

Lake Powell is awesome


Add comment

CAPTCHA

This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.