CORTEZ (KUSA) -- A family from Reno vacationing in Colorado lost all of their belongings when a flash flood crept up on them by surprise.
It happened Sunday in East Canyon near Cortez in the southwest corner of Colorado.
The King family was camping when a 200 foot wide wall of water came barreling towards them. They only had 40 seconds to scoop up their six kids and escape. They lost their van and most everything they brought with them from Reno.
"It came out of nowhere," Mindy King said. "It was less than 40 seconds. There's no way it was more than that. We barely made it up there, and we turned around and where we were sitting was completely washed away".
King initially thought the sound she heard was a gust of wind.
"All of a sudden my husband heard what we thought was wind, and he jokingly said 'are you sure it's wind or is it a flash flood?'" she said. "My husband said run, run, run!"
The family made it up the hill safely, as the newly formed river swallowed up their van and all of their belongings. They only made it with the clothes on their backs.
The family had been cut off from communication at their campsite. That day there was a 95 percent chance of a flash flood. They want to urge everyone to check ahead before they go camping.
The family isn't sure how long it's going to take to get back to Reno. In fact, they're not even sure how they're going to get back home. They're just grateful they survived. They're also grateful to the first responders who helped rescue them.
The Kings are currently staying with family in Dolores.