# Flood Warning Issued for Little Colorado River in Arizona Amid Heavy Rainfall

> The National Weather Service has issued a Flood Warning for Coconino and Navajo counties, citing excessive rainfall and imminent flooding along the Little Colorado River until Saturday morning.

By PrimaryBrief newsroom · Published 2026-10-23T13:53:15.376742Z
Canonical: https://primarybrief.com/article/flood-warning-issued-for-little-colorado-river-in-arizona-amid-heavy-rainfall-cef6feda

The National Weather Service (NWS) Flagstaff office issued a Flood Warning for parts of Coconino and Navajo counties in Arizona [1]. This warning was issued on October 23, 2026, at 5:17 AM MST, and remains in effect until Saturday, October 24, at 3:00 AM MST [1]. FOX 10 Phoenix also reported a Flood Warning for Coconino County for the same period [3]. The alert specifically targets the Little Colorado River, covering the area from Holbrook to Leupp [1].

Officials stated that the flooding is caused by excessive rainfall [1]. The NWS warned that flooding of the Little Colorado River is either imminent or already occurring [1]. Further rises in water levels are expected [1]. The warning also highlighted the danger of deadly flooding over low-water crossings [1].

As of 4:30 AM MST on October 23, the Little Colorado River at Holbrook measured 14.34 feet [1]. Its flood stage is 15.5 feet [1]. Forecasters predict a crest of 16.41 feet for the river at Holbrook [1]. A river gauge near Woodruff reported falling water levels at 5:15 AM MST on October 23, but elevated flow continued from Holbrook to Winslow [1]. Elevated flow is forecast to persist through the afternoon, with potential downstream impacts at Birdsprings later in the evening [1]. NWS Flagstaff reported Little Colorado River flooding on October 23, 2026 [5].

The region has experienced significant rainfall contributing to the flood risk [1]. As of October 22, flooding remained a threat across parts of the Southwest USA due to continued rainfall increasing runoff and water levels [4]. Flood watches extended through October 23 in some areas of Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah [4]. Earlier, a strong Pacific storm was anticipated to bring heavy rain to the Navajo Nation through Thursday [2]. National Weather Service forecasters had warned of possible flash flooding in washes, creeks, and low-water crossings [2]. A flood watch was issued for northern and central Arizona from October 21 through October 22 night [2]. This storm was drawing tropical and subtropical moisture into the region, bringing repeated rounds of showers and thunderstorms [2]. A second day of Southwest rain kept flood warnings across four states on October 23, 2026 [5].

## Evidence cited
1. NWS Flood Warning: Coconino, AZ; Navajo, AZ (nws_alerts) — https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.6ea1d354e9192eb8a08d35bc2267ae12c6067d6e.001.1
2. Heavy rain expected as flood watches cover Navajo Nation communities (navajotimes.com) — https://navajotimes.com/
3. Seen on TV: October 23 (fox10phoenix.com) — https://fox10phoenix.com/
4. Southwest USA Flood and Severe Weather Update: October 22, 2026 (iqair.com) — https://iqair.com/
5. EM Morning Brief, October 23rd, 2026 (substack.com) — https://substack.com/home