Salt Lake City officials are hosting sandbag-filling events this weekend.
The events are open to residents who would like to pick up sandbags, as well as volunteers who would like to help fill sandbags for the community at large.
The events will begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday at two separate locations: the “Big Field” at Sugar House Park, and at the west side’s Rosewood Park.
Mounds of sand are being trucked into the parks on Friday. The events will last until 5 p.m., or all sand has been bagged. If there is still sand left over on Sunday, efforts will start back up at the parks at 9 a.m.
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall urged volunteers to bring shovels, gloves, and “a good attitude,” and take public transportation to avoid parking issues.
Those interested in volunteering can sign up or request more information using this online form.
The weekend sandbagging events follow a call for volunteers late Wednesday in the Wasatch Hollow area of Salt Lake City, which saw floodwaters surge to about a foot high near 1700 South and 1700 East that evening.
Hundreds of volunteers responded, showing up in droves to fill sandbags and stack them to help divert rushing water away from homes.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) People work to protect homes into the night along 1700 South in Salt Lake City from the rising flow of Emigration Creek through Wasatch Hollow Park on Wednesday, April 12, 2023.
The volunteer effort continued Thursday afternoon, where more than a dozen volunteers equipped with their own shovels gathered near 1700 East and 1700 South at around 1 p.m.
One volunteer, Scott Hepburn, said he lives just south of the impacted area. He recently had been laid off, and said he had some free time on his hands.
“This needs to happen,” Hepburn said, “so I decided to come out since I’m not doing much else.“
Another volunteer, Charlie Sanchez, who is retired, said he heard about the flood and “just wanted to come up here and help.”
“I’m gonna help as long as I can, as long as my back will let me,” he joked. By about 3:30 p.m., the volunteer effort had wrapped up.
Mendenhall on Thursday attributed the minimal damage to homes in the Wasatch Hollow area to the volunteers who came out to help on a moment’s notice.
“This is a tribute to the teamwork between the city, the county and the residents of Salt Lake City,” Mendenhall said. “This is what we do. We show up. We work hard together, and we’re good at it.”
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Volunteers help fill sandbags in the continued effort to mitigate high water from Emigration Creek in Salt Lake City at Wasatch Hollow Park on Thursday, April 13, 2023.
