• Death Valley National Park receives 1.46in (3.71cm) of rain in one area, 75% of normal rainfall for August.
• Over 500 people trapped, 60 cars buried in mud and debris.
• Photographer claims to have witnessed “entire trees and boulders washing down”.

Hundreds of people have been trapped, vehicles have been washed away, and highways have been stopped in America’s Death Valley after record rains prompted flash floods.

The national park, which spans eastern California and Nevada, received 1.46in (3.71cm) of rain in one region, which is around 75% of what it normally receives in a year.

It was also the highest total ever recorded for the full month of August.

According to park authorities, the only single day with greater rain since 1936 was 15 April 1988, when 1.47in (3.73cm) fell.

While there were no initial reports of casualties, authorities verified that over 500 guests and 500 park employees were trapped within the park, and approximately 60 cars were buried in mud and debris.

According to photographer John Sirlin, “entire trees and boulders were washing down.”

“The noise from some of the rocks coming down the mountain was just incredible.”

He had seen the floods while attempting to photograph lightning as the storm approached.

“It was more extreme than anything I’ve seen there,” Mr Sirlin, who has chased storms since the 1990s, said.

“There were at least two dozen cars that got smashed and stuck in there,” he claimed, adding that he saw no injuries or “high water rescues.”

Large trash bins were thrown into parked automobiles during Friday’s storm, causing vehicles to crash, according to a statement from the park.

“Additionally, many facilities are flooded, including hotel rooms and business offices,” it stated.

Residents were also without water when a supply pipe that was being repaired ruptured, causing the system to collapse.

The storm came on the heels of another severe flooding incident at the park 120 miles northeast of Las Vegas earlier this week.

Some highways were blocked on Monday after being overwhelmed with mud and debris from flash floods that also struck western Nevada and northern Arizona.

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