Unusually heavy rains have flooded the driest place in the United States. In Death Valley National Park in the US state of California, the police evacuated hundreds of stranded people from "Death Valley". "Thanks to the hard work of the road workers, visitors who were previously unable to leave the hotels in the area could now carefully drive out with a police escort," the national park said on Saturday.
Helicopters would be used to patrol the park's outlying areas to ensure there were no stranded vehicles. There are currently no reports of injuries.
Unusually large amounts of rain fell on Death Valley National Park on Friday. The place is considered the driest and hottest in the United States.
About 3.7 centimeters of rain fell in the Furnace Creek area. According to media reports, this made the day the second wettest since records began in 1911. 0.3 centimeters is the average in August, as reported by the Washington Post. The annual average recorded a total of just under five centimeters.
About 500 visitors and 500 park employees were in Death Valley on Friday. Around 60 visitor and employee cars were buried under rubble near a hotel, according to CNN. The flash flooding and storm pushed dumpsters into parked cars, according to the park. In addition, many hotel rooms and business offices were flooded. Roads were blocked by fallen boulders and palm trees.
The national park said the water has receded in most areas, leaving extensive mud and gravel deposits. Roads in the park would remain closed until staff had an overview of the situation.
According to scientists, human-caused global warming also contributes to extreme precipitation events.
