Local brief
Flash Flood Warning: Paria River at Lees Ferry, Coconino County, AZ — until 11:15 a.m. MST (11:15 a.m. PDT) Monday; floodwater due at Lees Ferry 12–2 p.m.
The National Weather Service in Flagstaff issued a Flash Flood Warning for the Paria River in north-central Coconino County, Arizona, including Lees Ferry and Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, until 11:15 a.m. MST Monday, Oct. 12. NWS expects the floodwater to reach Lees Ferry between noon and 2 p.m., after the warning's end time, so keep watching.
Essentials: Flash Flood Warning from the National Weather Service in Flagstaff. Area: the Paria River in north-central Coconino County, Arizona, including Lees Ferry, the Lees Ferry campground, Vermilion Cliffs National Monument and the Colorado River near River Mile 0. In effect until 11:15 a.m. MST Monday, Oct. 12 (11:15 a.m. PDT; Arizona time and Pacific time are the same right now). NWS calls this life-threatening flash flooding.
Get prepared: https://noticenearby.com/prepare
What is happening: At 4:16 a.m. MST, a river gauge on the Paria River near U.S. 89 in southern Utah rose 3 feet quickly after Sunday's thunderstorms. Flash flooding is happening now or will start soon. NWS says the floodwater will flow down the Paria River and reach the Colorado River at Lees Ferry between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. MST (same in PDT).
Keep watching after 11:15 a.m.: The water is expected at Lees Ferry after the warning's listed end time. NWS may extend the warning. Stay away from the Paria River and its meeting point with the Colorado River at Lees Ferry from late morning through the afternoon, even if the warning has ended.
What to do: Get out of the Paria River slot canyon now. If you are camping or hiking, leave washes and creek beds and go to higher ground. River trips and anglers should check with Glen Canyon National Recreation Area before launching. Never drive or walk into floodwater. Turn around, don't drown. Emergency? Call 911.
Watch the 40-second video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/VFxeNZcuVqY
Upstream in Utah: A separate Flash Flood Warning covers the Paria River in Kane County, Utah, until 11 a.m. MDT (10 a.m. PDT): https://noticenearby.com/briefs/ut-kane-paria-river-flash-flood-warning-2026-10-12. A Flood Watch is also in effect for Marble and Glen Canyons, Grand Canyon Country, the Kaibab Plateau and the Mogollon Rim until 5 p.m. MST.
Stay informed: National Weather Service Flagstaff (https://www.weather.gov/fgz/), Glen Canyon National Recreation Area alerts (https://www.nps.gov/glca), Coconino County Emergency Management, and AZ 511 (https://az511.gov). Turn on emergency alerts on your phone.
Sources: National Weather Service Flagstaff Flash Flood Warning via api.weather.gov (https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.15c740130c54577b00115cb9dac0845d3ae89880.001.1), issued 4:16 a.m. MST Monday, Oct. 12. Notice Nearby wrote this brief in its own words. More Coconino County notices: https://noticenearby.com/az/coconino
Source: the public notice on this register NN-ENV-az-coconino-paria-river-flash-flood-warni · National Weather Service Flagstaff.
This is a Notice Nearby local brief — an in-house explainer written from a government-posted notice on this register. It is not official minutes, not a newspaper story, and not Legal Publication.