Parts of Idaho experienced severe weather conditions resembling an Arctic landscape on the first full weekend of summer, as torrential thunderstorms and hail inundated suburban streets with ice floats. Dramatic social media footage captured scenes of disarray across the Treasure Valley region, an area encompassing Ada and Canyon counties.
In a notable incident outside Boise on Saturday, a resident was recorded kayaking through ice-covered floodwaters that had turned a suburban road into a makeshift river. Simultaneously, a rural county near Nevada, Owyhee County, registered an exceptionally high number of lightning strikes, with 553 recorded in a single day. Ada County also experienced significant lightning activity, with 100 strikes, marking the second-highest daily total for June since 2000, according to the National Weather Service.
Josh Smith, lead meteorologist for the Boise-based National Weather Service, described the hail as small but abundant, contributing to the flooding. "That probably led to some of the flooding issues with some of those neighborhoods because all that melted off quickly, and the drains weren’t able to handle it – in addition to the inch-plus rain that we received," Smith explained. Winds topping 50 mph further exacerbated the storm's impact.
The intense rainfall and hail submerged parked cars up to their windows in some areas, while trash bins were seen floating through the rapidly moving water. Officials in Canyon County declared a countywide disaster emergency, and the Ada County Highway District deployed crews overnight to clear roads and address storm-related hazards. The Boise Police Department shared images of the inundated streets on Facebook, advising drivers to exercise extreme caution.
In neighboring Payette County, severe flooding triggered mudslides that led to numerous highway and street closures on Friday, according to the sheriff's office. As of the latest reports, it was not immediately clear if any injuries had occurred.
Forecasters warned that the severe weather was expected to persist through the weekend. A winter storm warning was issued for parts of eastern Idaho, with elevations above 6,500 feet anticipated to receive up to 8 inches of snow. The advisory cautioned about cold and wet backcountry conditions with a heightened risk of hypothermia for unprepared individuals, and noted that wet snow could cause trees to fall, potentially blocking forest roadways.