2 yurts washed away by floodwaters, crash into bridge in Oakhurst

Wednesday, February 8, 2017
2 yurts washed away by floodwaters, crash into bridge in Oakhurst
Kathleen Frye went from calling in a tow truck company to pull in one of her RV's stuck in flood water, to chasing after two of her yurts that got swept down the river.

OAKHURST, California (KFSN) -- If it wasn't one thing for Kathleen Frye it was another. All day, steady rain created constant problems for the manager of an RV campground in Oakhurst.

Frye went from calling in a tow truck company to pull in one of her RV's stuck in flood water, to chasing after two of her yurts that got swept down the river because of the rain. Both are worth more than $10,000 each.

Some resident in Oakhurst got quite a sight as two large Yurts washed down the Fresno River and crashed into a bridge.

"We couldn't even access them because the water was so high."

They were, however, able to save some of the furniture in the motel size tents,

but it is still all bad timing for Frye. She is just days away from one of her busiest times of the year.

"We do have people that were coming in for Valentine's Day as well as President's Day, so we've had to call those people and cancel and refund them fully."

A couple miles down the road, tenants at an apartment complex were dealing with their own set of problems. Water from the river flooded the first floor, leaving at least two families of five with kids without a home for the night.

"Really bad because even the ones above they don't got power or nothing, how are they going to sleep there-- it's cold," said Lazaro Rivas, Oakhurst.

#abc30insider's catch flooding and other things happening throughout the Valley.

People in the community, of all ages, say this is unusual.

"It's the worst I've ever seen it for sure, I've been up there all my life and I've never seen it run this fast this big this high," said Richard Ayala, Oakhurst.

"I've been alive 10 years and there was a drought for seven and I've seen it really dry, I've seen this river with no water, but I've never seen it with this much water," said Seth Altimus, Oakhurst.

Water created a lot of devastation in just a matter of hours for many residents.

The manager of the RV campground tells us they are working to see if insurance will cover the yurts that are a total loss.