It's not unusual for thunderstorms to drench Death Valley this time of year, but this October was different.

The northern section of the park was hammered by back-to-back storms, followed by a powerful weather system that dropped nearly 3 inches of rain in five hours, triggering a 1,000-year flood event that battered historic structures, chewed through roadways and altered the rugged landscape with layers of mud and rocks.

It was the wettest October on record in the area, which normally receives about 4 inches of rain a year.

Hardest hit was one of the park's best-known tourist stops, the area surrounding Scotty's Castle, a rambling medieval-style villa erected in steep and narrow Grapevine Canyon in the 1920s.

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This week, federal appraisers fanned out to take a full accounting of the destruction as utility crews continued the massive job of hauling away mountains of muck from roads, utility easements and the Scotty's Castle area, which is visited annually by 120,000 people and generates about $550,000 in fees a year.

The villa suffered relatively minor damage. But the adjacent visitors center, bookstore and administrative offices were swamped with mud up to 4 feet deep. Some exterior walls are listing under the pressure of debris piled as high as door handles. An outdoor swimming pool, which was never completed in the 1920s, for the first time is filled with water, albeit muddy.

Flooding destroyed the area's water treatment facility and sewage system, swept away miles of fencing and reduced 24 power poles to splintered stumps.

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"With El Nińo approaching, it is possible that more flooding could occur in the park this winter and spring," Dierkes said.

The good news: More thunderstorms could transform this unforgiving desert of splintery rock towers, dunes and scruffy mountains into panoramic displays of spring wildflowers.

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Work is planned on fixing up Scotty's Castle, the storied landmark in Death Valley National Park that's been shut since flash floods last year damaged the circa 1922 ranch house and surrounding roads.

The National Park Service estimates that the castle nicknamed for gold prospector and con man Walter E. Scott may be ready for visitors in 2019.

Flood control berms are needed, as well as repairs to the electrical, water and sewer systems and the building itself, a recent report from the agency says.

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Most roads have been cleared, and repairs to Scotty's Castle Road are expected to begin later this year. Badwater Road (closed through Jubilee Pass to Shoshone, Calif.) are to be fixed starting this month.

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