SE DÁÁ K’ÁÁN CHAPTER — Ronald Joe, 61, has spent the majority of his life in his family’s beige, single-story home, with two bedrooms, a kitchen and a small family room. Outside on the 1-acre property was a little garden.

“But that’s all gone now,” Joe said, sitting in the Navajo Nation’s Tse Dáá K’áán Chapter House on Monday night.

Joe is one thousands of people displaced by catastrophic flooding that overwhelmed communities in southern Colorado and Utah, as well as northern Arizona and New Mexico. He was one of dozens forced to evacuate their homes in the Tse Dáá K’áán Chapter, also known as the Hogback Chapter, of the Navajo Nation over the last two weeks.

The region has a population of about 1,200 people, but its 120,000 acres straddling the San Juan River between Farmington and Shiprock make it difficult to respond in emergencies such as this, chapter officials said.

On Oct. 20, forecasts predicted severe flooding along the San Juan, Animas and La Plata rivers. Joe said he kept a close eye on reports, evacuation orders and the San Juan River’s waterline, which sits just a quarter mile from his home.

“When they were doing evacuations, the first thing I did was just grab all important documents, papers, files and stuff like that, and start just packing small stuff, food, blankets, clothing, dry clothing, set them aside, and just get ready,” Joe said. “By [Oct. 22], my truck was already packed.”

On Oct. 23, Joe watched the water level rise as flows on the San Juan River surged to a flow of more than 33,000 cubic feet per second by 5:30 p.m. That was 15 times the river’s flow rate 48 hours prior, according to U.S. Geological Survey data. By 9:30 p.m., Joe decided to leave along with his two dogs and cat. By 10 p.m., an inch of water sat in the home.

“Emotionally, it kind of took a little bit out of me because what I put into the house, what we put into the house, now … it feels like we got to start all over again,” he said. “We’re hoping that we can rebuild, rebuilding the same location, maybe rebuild on higher grounds. I don’t know. We don’t know yet.”

Chapter President Robert Lapahie Jr. said the event is unlike any the community has seen before, and one they need more support to endure.

“We don’t have a plan in place,” he said. “But now, we’ve experienced it, now we know what to expect and we need to have a shelter in place for these type of disasters now.”

On Monday evening, Lapahie said he and a small handful of other chapter officials have worked around the clock since Oct. 23 to provide food, shelter and resources to those most severely impacted by flooding. But he said they need more help and coordination from Navajo Nation officials, including those responsible for requesting assistance during emergencies.

“We do have emergency funds, but people need to understand that we that need to be diligent and be there for one another,” Lapahie said, noting he and his small team have been coordinating evacuation, assistance and recovery efforts for nearly two weeks with little guidance. Asked if he had contacted local disaster relief organizations, Lapahie said they’ve received some donations, but had trouble connecting with emergency coordinators.

“We’re getting redirected in different avenues, different areas, and they’re saying they’re overwhelmed already,” Lapahie said Monday. “So right now we’re trying to do whatever we can to assist.”

Chapter Manager Danielle Redhouse had been sleeping for days at the Chapter House, off of U.S. 64 a few miles west of Kirtland, in case anyone else arrived in need of help. They had turned the small building into a temporary shelter with about 20 cots, food and basic resources.

She said so many people had come into the temporary shelter over the last two weeks she had lost count on the number.

“We’ve been trying to keep food provided as much as we can, cooking breakfast, just doing everything in any way, not only to the families that are impacted, but also the whole community,” Redhouse said.

San Juan County spokesperson Devin Neely said as of Wednesday, the county had not received any requests to assist. The New Mexican was unable to reach Navajo Nation Emergency Operations Center staff regarding its emergency protocols on Wednesday.

Lapahie said he feels a lack of information and coordination amid this unprecedented emergency has strained their community.

Flood devastation across the Navajo Nation has been widespread. Nonstop emergency response operations have been underway for weeks, including a recent airlift rescue of three people conducted by the Navajo Police Department’s Dilkon District in Arizona. The Navajo Nation Council also authorized $20 million in emergency response funding Friday, along with legislation to streamline donation processes.

On Wednesday, Sandoval County Commissioners issued a emergency and disaster declaration for northern parts of the county affected by flooding, including parts of the Torreón-Star Lake, Ojo Encino and Counselor chapters of the Navajo Nation.

“We look forward to working together with our tribal partner, the Navajo Nation, so that emergency funds and mutual aid can be garnered for the benefit of our shared citizens,” Commissioner Joshua Jones said in a news release.

In Hogback Chapter, their local makeshift emergency team evacuated 41 homes due to recent floods. Eight are now uninhabitable, and of those eight, two have been destroyed, Lapahie said. One family was connected with temporary housing through the Navajo Housing Authority, but Lapahie emphasized that is a 30-day solution for a family that has lost everything. There are also over a dozen ranchers needing feed for livestock, he added.

Among those sitting in Hogback’s Chapter House on Monday night was Gloria Benally, a former coordinator with the Navajo Nation Judicial Branch Peacemaking Program and member of Indian Country Grassroots, a nonprofit based in Farmington focused on empowering Navajo communities and traditional knowledge.

Benally reflected on what she’d seen with her community’s response to the flooding.

“When we see things like that, that’s when our Diné people are great people,” she said. “They’re awesome people. We step up and help one another. The food that comes, clothes that they don’t need, blankets that they don’t need. Sometimes, even though you need it, you can give it away. Things like that, that’s how our people are. That’s what we appreciate, and that’s that’s what keeps us resilient.”

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