House Collapses Into River Amid 'Unprecedented' Yellowstone Flooding
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Shocking footage shows an entire building collapsing into the Yellowstone River in Montana as the area has been hit with 'unprecedented flooding'.
Parts of Yellowstone National Park were forced to be evacuated this week as an influx of rain and rapidly melting snow triggered floods and mudslides in the area.
Impacts of the adverse weather events were caught on camera on Monday (13 June) in Gardiner, Montana, where Casey White filmed from one side of the river while a house on the other had its supports washed away by the rapidly flowing water.
See the building get swept away here:
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A GoFundMe page set up in the wake of the flooding explained five families and other individuals who lived in the building had 'lost everything' they were unable to take with them when evacuated.
Onlookers could be heard expressing their shock as the house teetered forwards after its stilts gave way under the force of the water. It soon tipped entirely into the river and began floating away on the current.
The home wasn't the only structure affected by the flooding, as a bridge on the same river is also said to have been swept away, as well as a number of other homes. There have been no immediate reports of injuries as a result, according to officials cited by NBC News.
Gardiner, which is located at the northern entrance to Yellowstone, found itself isolated as bridges and roads were overcome with water, with damage from the flooding described by Park County Sheriff Brad Bichler as 'significant'.
⚠️UPDATE (6/14 @ 6:38pm)⚠️
— Yellowstone National Park (@YellowstoneNPS) June 15, 2022
Northern portion of Yellowstone likely to remain closed for substantial length of time due to severely damaged, impacted infrastructure. Visitors traveling to park soon must stay informed about current situation, roads & weather https://t.co/mymnqGvcVB pic.twitter.com/li6Vwy4qLt
"The water's coming down and it's kind of showing us exactly what kind of damage we're dealing with," Bichler said at a news conference.
A Montana helicopter company named Rocky Mountain Rotors helped approximately 40 people escape the flooding in Gardiner on Monday and Tuesday, though Laura Jones of the company told CNN they haven't specifically 'rescued' anyone who was in danger.
"We have mainly been transporting people out of there. We have also taken some passengers in who had pets they needed to get to or live there and needed to get home," she explained.
The Yellowstone River reached a record high on Monday, according to CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller, with a gauge located at Corwin Springs, Montana reaching 13.88 feet on Monday afternoon.
Many residents in affected areas have been advised to avoid drinking local water due to a broken water main and submerged wells.
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