Minor flooding reported at Lake McDonald Lodge

Heavy rain on Sunday caused minor flooding in Glacier National Park’s Lake McDonald Lodge.

Park spokesman Tim Rains said the exterior storm drains around the lodge overflowed, sending water into the historic hotel. Rains said the water was ankle-deep in the basement and one to two inches of water was pooling on portions of the carpeted ground floor.

No one was evacuated, and Columbia Falls-based disaster remediation business FloodCo was called in to remove the water.

Marc Ducharme, general manager of Xanterra Parks & Resorts, said the flooding did not appear to have caused any significant damage.

“It’s a little early to determine, but it doesn’t seem like there’s going to be any significant damage,” Ducharme said.

The storm system appeared to drop widely varying amounts of precipitation Sunday. In nearby West Glacier, the largest single-hour rainfall total was only about a quarter of an inch, while the rain gauge at Hungry Horse Dam registered .73 inches falling from 6 to 7 p.m. on Sunday.

No roads in Glacier National Park were closed as a result of the flooding, and Lake McDonald Lodge remains open.

Xanterra completed a $3 million renovation of the historic hotel earlier this year, the first major overhaul of the building in three decades.