Story perspectives

GoFundMe Supports Lydia, Only Child After Utah Family Flood Tragedy

7/20/2026

Left

Friends Aid Lydia

Friends launched a GoFundMe campaign to aid Lydia, the sole surviving child, after the flash-flood tragedy.
Sheriff’s office confirmed heavy-rain flooding killed Spencer Long, his wife Katrina Long, and their three sons near Sunglow Campground, Utah.
Recent wildfire burn scars on the canyon’s dry wash heightened flash-flood risk in the area.
Susan Gubler said Lydia now bears a mountain on her shoulders as the sole child.

Right

Captain Long Dies

Provo Fire Department confirmed off-duty Captain Spencer Long died with four family members in the flash flood.
Wayne County sheriff’s office said heavy-rain flooding killed five family members near Sunglow Campground in Bicknell, Utah.
Sheriff Micah Gulley thanked Sevier County Search and Rescue, Utah Highway Patrol and a helicopter.
National Weather Service warned flood danger in burn-scarred canyons, noting a September 2022 Hildale tragedy.

Center

Longs Perish

Resident James Todd Manwill urged creation of an immediate monsoon-season warning system after the flood.
Capt. Spencer Long, wife Katrina Long and children died in a flood in Wayne County, Utah, with all accounted for.
Two male campers were later discovered dead, increasing the total fatalities.
Fire departments and community groups posted tributes honoring Katrina Long’s service and offered condolences.

History

Historical Context

The September 2013 Colorado flood, triggered by 13 inches of rain on slopes burned in the 2012 Waldo Canyon fire, killed ten and caused $2 billion damage. That event showed how wildfires amplify flash-flood risk, a pattern repeated in Utah’s September 2024 Sunglow Campground flood that claimed the Spencer Long family and prompted Governor Spencer Cox and the Utah Department of Natural Resources to pursue warning systems and forest rehabilitation.

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Friends Aid Lydia

Friends launched a GoFundMe campaign to aid Lydia, the sole surviving child, after the flash-flood tragedy.
Sheriff’s office confirmed heavy-rain flooding killed Spencer Long, his wife Katrina Long, and their three sons near Sunglow Campground, Utah.
Recent wildfire burn scars on the canyon’s dry wash heightened flash-flood risk in the area.
Susan Gubler said Lydia now bears a mountain on her shoulders as the sole child.

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