# Flood Warning Covers Rio Verde and Fort McDowell

The NWS reports flooding in the warned part of Maricopa County as upstream Bartlett Dam releases contribute to rising water.

By Will Langan | 24X7 News
Published: 2026-10-31T22:06:19.746Z
Updated: 2026-10-31T22:06:19.746Z
Section: U.S.
Format: News
Canonical: https://24x7news.us/articles/rio-verde-fort-mcdowell-flood-warning-october-31-2026

The National Weather Service in Phoenix issued an October 31 flood warning for part of Maricopa County, identifying Rio Verde and Fort McDowell among the locations affected by rising water.

The warning was issued at 2:41 p.m. Mountain Standard Time Saturday and remains in effect until 8 a.m. MST Monday, November 2.

At issuance, the weather service said flooding was already occurring in the warned area. Its bulletin cited gauge reports and upstream releases from Bartlett Dam, and said streams continued to rise because of runoff from earlier rainfall.

The notice warns of flooding in rivers, creeks, streams and other low-lying or flood-prone places. It does not provide a release-volume figure, identify individual road closures or establish that all of Maricopa County is flooded.

Rio Verde and Fort McDowell are named in the location list, but the warning’s geographic coverage is the specified part of the county. The county name in the alert should not be read as an assertion of identical conditions across the wider Phoenix metropolitan area.

The weather service advises people not to drive through flooded roads. It also warns that streams and creeks can become dangerous during heavy rain and urges campers and hikers to avoid them.

The bulletin combines a report of flooding already underway with a warning period extending into Monday morning. The end time is the notice’s stated validity limit, rather than a guarantee that water will recede or roads will reopen at that hour.

Sources
NWS Phoenix — October 31 Flood Warning: https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.aae139e5ea35d2e6c4524f15ebc03afad151f463.001.1

## Sources
- NWS Phoenix — October 31 Flood Warning: https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.aae139e5ea35d2e6c4524f15ebc03afad151f463.001.1