AFP

A hiker swept away in flash floods and torrential rain was still missing Monday as a weekend of storms forced hundreds to evacuate in the latest weather disasters to hit national parks in the United States.

Heavy rains were also causing havoc in parts of Texas on Monday as forecasters predicted more precipitation throughout the southern part of the country for the rest of the week.

Jetal Agnihotri, who park officials said they were still searching for Monday, was one of a number of hikers hit by surging waters Friday when flash floods tore through an area of Zion National Park in Utah called the Narrows, known for red rock cliffs and towering canyons.

One injured hiker was carried hundreds of yards (meters) downstream by the sudden inundation, while others were left stranded until rangers reached them, the National Park Service said.

In New Mexico’s Carlsbad Caverns National Park, around 200 people had to be evacuated after being trapped for several hours by rising waters.

No one was injured in that incident.

The flash flooding came after heavy rains pummeled the drought-hit southwest, with several inches (centimeters) falling in a short space of time.

The downtown area of Moab, Utah was left under three feet of water by the rains, the New York Times quoted a city spokeswoman as saying.

“We had water that came through in a huge rush along with lots of debris and some full-sized trees,” Lisa Church said, adding the river had overflowed its banks in three places.

Elsewhere, footage showed children in Arizona being rescued from a school bus stranded by rising waters.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said northern Texas was expected to be walloped this week with up to seven inches of rain, with parts of the state of Mississippi also expected to be affected.

“Much of this rainfall will be beneficial and welcome due to the effects of an ongoing drought,” the agency said.

“But the potential still exists for instances of flash flooding in urban areas and places with poor drainage.”

Flash flood warnings were in effect around Dallas on Monday, with forecasters predicting difficult conditions on the roads, and videos showed vehicles becoming submerged in floodwaters while driving in the city overnight.

“Turn around, don’t drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Be aware of your surroundings and do not drive on flooded roads,” the NWS said.

– Worsening drought –

The western United States is more than 20 years into a painful drought that has left rivers and reservoirs badly depleted, and the countryside tinder-dry.

But sudden, intense downpours are often unhelpful.

“If the water all comes down over a very quick period of time, it’ll run off,” Chris Rasmussen, an NWS meteorologist in Tucson, Arizona, told AFP last week.

“It doesn’t get a chance to really soak into the ground, as you would like to see.

“It’s always nicer to have good, moderate amount of rains over a long period of time.”

Human activity, specifically the runaway use of fossil fuels over the last century, has caused the Earth’s average temperature to rise.

This has altered weather patterns, worsening droughts in some parts of the world, and intensifying storms in other areas.

Much of Europe has baked under an intense heatwave over the last few months, with record-low rainfall emptying rivers and leaving the countryside vulnerable to wildfire.

Chinese authorities said Monday they were powering down key landmarks to save energy as faltering rivers send hydroelectric plants dark.

The rapper Fetty Wap on Monday pleaded guilty to a drug conspiracy charge that alleged he participated in a Long Island-based trafficking ring.

The “Trap Queen” rapper born Willie Junior Maxwell II pleaded guilty to distributing and possessing cocaine, the top count against him.

He was first arrested last fall on charges that he and other co-conspirators transported, distributed and sold more than 100 kilograms of cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, and crack cocaine across Long Island and New Jersey between June 2019 and June 2020.

He now faces a five-year mandatory minimum sentence. The plea deal allows him to avoid a potential life behind bars if he had been convicted on all counts.

The rapper did not request a release on bond and remains in custody awaiting sentencing at a yet-unscheduled date.

FBI agents originally arrested Maxwell on October 28, 2021 at the Citi Field baseball stadium in Queens, where he had been scheduled to perform at the Rolling Loud music festival.

He gained recognition when his debut single “Trap Queen” reached number two on the US charts in 2015.

Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert who became the face of America’s fight against Covid-19, announced Monday he will leave government service after more than 50 years in December, stepping down as advisor to President Joe Biden.

In the chaotic early days of the pandemic, Fauci became the nation’s most trusted expert on Covid — but his clashes with former president Donald Trump over the virus response drew anger from the right, and he now lives with security protection following death threats against his family.

The 81-year-old, who has served under seven presidents beginning with Ronald Reagan, said in a statement he would be leaving both his position as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and that of chief medical advisor to Biden.

But he added: “I am not retiring.” Instead Fauci, who had said he would leave by the end of Biden’s current term, said he now intended to “pursue the next chapter of my career.”

Biden extended his “deepest thanks” to Fauci in a White House statement, adding that the country is “stronger, more resilient, and healthier because of him.”

Fauci has helmed the United States’ response to infectious disease outbreaks since the 1980s, from HIV/AIDS to Covid.

When the coronavirus first spread globally from China in 2020, he became a credible source of reliable information, reassuring the public with his calm and professorial demeanor during frequent media appearances.

His straight-talking approach won him legions of fans, who bought T-shirts and bobbleheads in his likeness and made cocktails named after him.

“I will always be grateful that we had a once-in-a-century public health leader to guide us through a once-in-a-century pandemic,” tweeted former president Barack Obama upon news Fauci was stepping down.

But his honest takes on America’s early failures to get to grips with the virus soon brought Fauci into conflict with Trump. The White House at one point barred him from doing TV interviews and launched a media blitz against him.

The clash helped turn him into a hate figure for many on the right — already incensed by the pandemic protections Fauci was advocating, from masks and vaccines to lockdown measures.

“Dr. Fauci lost the trust of the American people when his guidance unnecessarily kept schools closed and businesses shut,” Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy tweeted Monday.

In emotional testimony earlier this year, Fauci slammed another prominent Republican, the vaccine skeptic Senator Rand Paul, for unleashing “crazies” against him, recounting “threats upon my life, harassment of my family, and my children with obscene phone calls.”

This month a West Virginia man was sentenced to three years in prison for threatening to drag Fauci and his family into the street and beat them to death.

But despite the threats, Fauci has been conciliatory towards Trump, telling Politico that they developed “an interesting relationship.”

– ‘Honor of a lifetime’ –

It was not the first time Fauci faced criticism and clashes. In the 1980s he became a lightning rod for accusations the government was not doing enough to stem the rise of HIV/AIDS — but he later forged a close collaboration with activists.

His accomplishments include implementing a fast-track system that widened access to antiretroviral medicines, and working with former president George H.W. Bush to plow in more resources.

Later, under president George W. Bush, Fauci was the architect of a relief plan credited with saving millions of lives in sub-Saharan Africa.

As a scientist, he is credited with developing effective treatments for formerly fatal inflammatory diseases, as well as for contributions into understanding how HIV destroys the body’s defenses.

Despite his many duties, he had continued to treat patients at the NIH’s Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. It was not clear if that was part of his plans going forward.

Biden said that after winning the 2020 election, as he built a team to lead the Covid-19 response, Fauci was “one of my first calls.”

“I’ve been able to call him at any hour of the day for his advice,” the president stated.

Fauci said it had been the “honor of a lifetime” to lead the NIAID, which he has done since 1984.

He did not spell out what he will do next, but said he wants to inspire and mentor the next generation, citing the “energy and passion” he still has for the field despite his decades of service.

“I am proud to have been part of this important work,” he said.