Yesterday, emergency crews rushed to reopen roads and restore utility service in remote villages of Montana and Wyoming cut off by unprecedented floods that prompted Yellowstone National Park's first midsummer shutdown in over three decades.

Governor Greg Gianforte announced a state of emergency in Montana after days of record rainfall caused enormous flooding, mudslides, and rockfalls in the Yellowstone region. Rescue and relief efforts are centered in three counties.

The upheaval followed one of the region's wettest springs in many years. It coincided with a dramatic rise in July temperatures that has accelerated the runoff of melting snow from late-winter storms in the park's upper elevations.

All five entrances to Yellowstone were closed to incoming traffic Wednesday for the first time since 1988 when catastrophic flames ravaged the region.

Additionally, authorities were working to rescue stranded guests from the park, which was scheduled to stay closed until at least midweek.

No fatalities or injuries have been recorded, but shocking video footage aired by NBC News showed a whole riverfront house being washed off its foundation and into the Yellowstone River's rushing flood north of the park.

At the request of local law enforcement authorities, the Montana National Guard dispatched helicopters to Roscoe and Cooke City to assist with search and rescue efforts.

In a statement, Gianforte claimed that quick snowmelt and recent heavy rains had caused "severe flooding that is destroying homes, eroding roads and bridges, and leaving Montanans without power and water services." "I have asked state agencies to support these communities with their resources," he said.

Surging floodwaters

Yesterday, a portion of the only route out of Gardiner, home to around 900 people, including many park staff, was partially cleared after repeated rockslides and washouts isolated the village. Residents and guests were permitted to leave, but only delivery and emergency vehicles could enter.

According to the National Weather Service, floodwaters along the Yellowstone River were approximately one meter higher than their previous record highs set more than a century earlier.

The condition of the roads and bridges that wind through Yellowstone park and around Yellowstone Lake, the biggest alpine lake in North America, was still being evaluated.

The lake is supplied by more than 141 rivers and streams, with its only outflow flowing north into the Yellowstone River. It has a surface area of 132 square miles, roughly the size of Las Vegas.

Multiple sections of the winding North Entrance Road between Gardiner and the park headquarters in Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming, were eroded by raging floodwaters, requiring months to repair.

Many of the hardest-hit areas in Montana rely heavily on summer tourists and were preparing to mark Yellowstone's 150th anniversary this year, with travel officials anticipating a resurgence after Covid-19 restrictions the previous two years.