Flash floods force evacuations across Arizona and Colorado as a river is forecast to top the town-destroying 1911 flood

Sedona, Arizona officials ordered immediate evacuations near Oak Creek on Sunday as rapidly rising floodwaters left multiple residents trapped in their homes. In Pagosa Springs, Colorado, the San Juan River is forecast to crest above 19 feet — a level that would exceed the 1911 flood that destroyed most of the town.

Pagosa Springs is dealing with this threat just one week after a previous catastrophic flood event, with emergency crews warned they may be severely limited in their ability to respond.

The National Weather Service has issued flood watches across virtually the whole of Arizona and stretching into southern Utah, southwestern Colorado, western New Mexico and southern Nevada.

Officials warn that up to 4 inches of rain may accumulate throughout the region by Monday, as successive Pacific storm systems move through terrain that is already saturated.