Tui McNutt sweeps mud and water out of her storage unit on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. McNutt had just moved her belongings into the storage unit on Monday before it flooded. She said she hadn't been able to stop crying all day.
Julie Benden walks through her flooded fireworks stand on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. Benden estimates she lost $22,000 worth of merchandise in the flood.
Ruined fireworks litter the floor of Julie Benden's fireworks stand on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. Benden estimates she lost $22,000 worth of merchandise in the flood.
Tui McNutt helps her daughter, Dawn Tyburski, salvage items from her childcare center, Growing Roots Learning Center, on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Carrie Dean embraces her friend, Dawn Tyburski, as they try to salvage items from Tyburski's childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Jon O'Connor helps pump water out from Julie Benden's property on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston.
Tui McNutt sorts through old family photographs of her daughter and deceased husband on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. McNutt had just moved her belongings into the storage unit on Monday before it flooded. She said she hadn't been able to stop crying all day.
Carrie Dean, left, helps Dawn Tyburski, right, as they try to salvage items from Tyburski's childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Ruined fireworks litter the floor of Julie Benden's fireworks stand on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. Benden estimates she lost $22,000 worth of merchandise in the flood.
Friends and family of Dawn Tyburski try to salvage items her childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Friends and family of Dawn Tyburski try to salvage items her childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Tui McNutt sweeps mud and water out of her storage unit on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. McNutt had just moved her belongings into the storage unit on Monday before it flooded. She said she hadn't been able to stop crying all day.
Julie Benden walks through her flooded fireworks stand on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. Benden estimates she lost $22,000 worth of merchandise in the flood.
Ruined fireworks litter the floor of Julie Benden's fireworks stand on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. Benden estimates she lost $22,000 worth of merchandise in the flood.
Tui McNutt helps her daughter, Dawn Tyburski, salvage items from her childcare center, Growing Roots Learning Center, on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Carrie Dean embraces her friend, Dawn Tyburski, as they try to salvage items from Tyburski's childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Jon O'Connor helps pump water out from Julie Benden's property on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston.
Tui McNutt sorts through old family photographs of her daughter and deceased husband on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. McNutt had just moved her belongings into the storage unit on Monday before it flooded. She said she hadn't been able to stop crying all day.
Carrie Dean, left, helps Dawn Tyburski, right, as they try to salvage items from Tyburski's childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Ruined fireworks litter the floor of Julie Benden's fireworks stand on Thursday, June 16, 2022, in Livingston. Benden estimates she lost $22,000 worth of merchandise in the flood.
Friends and family of Dawn Tyburski try to salvage items her childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
Friends and family of Dawn Tyburski try to salvage items her childcare center on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Thursday was the first day they were allowed back in the center after it flooded.
For many flooded Livingston residents, Thursday was the first day they could re-enter their homes and businesses and start cleaning out muck, mud and debris.
Longtime Livingston resident Jason Mascari, who owns a home on Ninth Street Island, waded into his house for the first time on Wednesday, but the water was still too high to do much more.
By Thursday, after water levels lowered some more, Mascari, his family and friends worked to clear out his house that had been submerged in about 3 feet of water.
“Vivian spent part of her birthday ripping out carpet in her bedroom,” Mascari said, of his daughter, who turned 13 on Thursday.
Mascari has lived at his home with his wife, Shannan, since 2003. Together they’ve raised three kids.
Their property abuts the river’s edge. He’s never seen the water get so high, he said.
On Monday, as waters began to rise in Livingston, Mascari evacuated his family from the home and they found a place to stay.
“We got them out on the jet boat,” he said. Mascari stayed behind. “I tried to ride it out.”
The total extent of the damage for Park County is still unclear days after the Yellowstone River flooded and broke previous high water records set in 1918.
Officials are now working assess damage to roadways, bridges, and other infrastructure, in addition to private property.
Thursday about 20 people from the County Assist Team were out across Park County assessing and cataloguing damages, including finding high water marks, said Patrick Lonergan, the deputy commander for the Department of National Resources and Conservation Montana County Assist Team.
The team is focusing on collecting data from the previous 100-year floodplain, adding a quarter-mile buffer for additional flooding.
There are about 700 addresses in that area. The team was about a quarter through that, he said during a Thursday press conference.
In Livingston, efforts were underway to reinforce the levee and ensure it remains stable, Livingston Fire Chief Ron Lindroth said during the press conference.
Preparations were also underway for any potential flooding that could happen over the week.
On the other end of Livingston from where the Mascari’s were cleaning up, a water pump slowly drained a couple feet of standing water from a property off East Park Street.
The pump belonged to Jon O’Connor, who had borrowed it from a friend in Bozeman to help dry out Livingston.
O’Connor had just drained standing water near the KPRK building, which he operates for Townsquare Media in Bozeman.
The KPRK building was drying out, but O’Connor said two radio transmitters were lost during the flooding.
In the meantime, O’Connor planned to continue westward into town offering the water pump to his neighbors.
The pump was helpful for Dawn Tyburski, who operates the Growing Roots Learning Center on 1400 E. Park St. That morning she was unable to get into her day care while feet of water still stood.
By 11 a.m., the water was mostly pumped out.
Tyburski, her mother and two friends began emptying out the day care of soggy and mucky toys, children’s chairs and some personal belongings.
Tyburski’s mother, Tui McNutt, had recently moved from Townsend to Livingston and had put some personal belongings in storage in a shed next to the day care on Monday.
She said it was hard Thursday to parse through those items. Stuffed animals gifted to her from her late husband and a pink lamp given to her from a Townsend neighbor as a going away gift were wrecked.
Other things, like family photos in a plastic trash bag, were waiting to be sorted through.
“I can’t help myself,” she said. “I’ve been crying.”
A line of muck showed how far the water had gotten, both inside and out, of the day care — about three feet.
Right across the parking lot, Julie Benden was assessing how many firecrackers were ruined by the flood.
Benden and her husband, Chris, operate the Last Stand Fireworks and had just received a $5,000 shipment of firecrackers on Friday preparing to open next week.
She tentatively estimates there’s about $22,000 worth of fireworks that are a total loss. She won’t know fully until she can empty out the stand, inspect and inventory each firework.
Benden — who owns about 8 acres including the day care building — said most of her property was severely flooded.
That included the day care, fireworks stand, a tiny home that was completely flooded and two homes that narrowly escaped devastating flooding.
“Honestly, I haven’t processed it too much,” Benden said. “And I feel like other people are in a worse boat.”
Benden’s staring down the loss of income from her fireworks stand, from her flooded rentals and the cost of repairs to her property.
Benden’s set up a GoFundMe to help cover the costs. The Mascari family has too.
Tyburski said it was emotional clearing out the day care, where she’s operated her business for a decade, but said she was grateful she hadn’t lost more.
“We can rebuild,” Tyburski said. “A lot of people can’t rebuild their homes.”
A church has already offered to let Tyburski use their basement as a temporary site for day care.
That kind of immediate aid from neighbors was happening all around Livingston.
At the Livingston Food Resource Center, a hot lunch was available to anyone in need; Expedition Church was filling sandbags and coordinating volunteers; the local thrift store Community Closet started a “Cleanup Closet” program to get cleaning supplies to flood victims; and posts offering help filled up a local Facebook page.
There are several other ways to donate aid to Park County, including the Southwest Montana Flood Relief Fund set up by Greater Gallatin United Way and Park County Community Foundation.
Support from friends and family has been one of few silver linings to the disaster, Mascari said.
“Livingston community support is always amazing. ... There’s always love and connection from friends and family and community members, people are calling me from out of state even,” Mascari said.
To see what else is happening in Gallatin County subscribe to the online paper.
Juliana Sukut can be reached at 582-2630 or jsukut@dailychronicle.com
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