"We closed some roads and facilities today," Wines added, ticking off the Badwater Road, the North Highway, the Furnace Creek Visitor Center, the Stovepipe Wells ranger station, and all campgrounds. "The hotels in the park have all contacted people with reservations to warn them and offer free cancellations. They have not closed, though."

The storm was expected to not only disrupt travel in Death Valley, but possibly lead to power outages and affect Internet and cellphone service.

Wines said there's a "good chance" the flooding will surpass that which the park experienced last summer, when a series of flash floods pounded the park, tearing up water lines, eroding roads, partially burying vehicles in debris, and closing much of the park. One storm dropped nearly 1.5 inches of rain in a matter of hours.

"The Oasis at Death Valley has done some sandbagging at The Inn. They're having people park elsewhere than the lot that flooded badly last year," said Wines. "NPS is sandbagging a couple employee houses that flooded last year, but mostly, sandbags won't do much for what we're facing."

At Mojave National Preserve, the National Park Service was particularly concerned about flooding because of the recent York Fire.

"As the York Fire burned through Mojave National Preserve, it removed the already sparse vegetation, decreasing the soil’s ability to absorb water and increasing the capacity for water flow to cause more damage," preserve staff noted in a social media post. "The preserve’s infrastructure was built to sustain rain events before the York Fire changed the landscape. This has made structures like roads, buildings, and culverts more vulnerable in post-fire rain events. Culverts in the preserve may be unable to manage the amount of water during a heavy rain event; causing roads to flood with debris, buckle and become undercut. This creates unsafe or impossible travel conditions."

On its website the park staff warned of "a hazardous situation of flooded roads, missing roadway, debris on roads. Please do not drive around barricades or cones - Do not follow third party navigation applications into area."

At Lake Mead, the Park Service initially closed Temple Bar, Cottonwood Cove, Cottonwood Cove East, Nevada Telephone Cove, Christmas Tree Pass, Willow Beach and Eldorado Canyon, Hemenway Harbor and the Callville Bay Complexes, before implementing the full park closure. The park also reported that it "has already experienced multiple power and utility outages prior to the arrival of Hurricane Hilary. Due to a storm last night, one marina experienced extensive damage, including  multiple dock separations, power outages, and fuel outages."