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Medically reviewed by Dr. Kiyan Rad, DO — Medical Director, Sanova Urgent Care, Tucson, AZ
You waded through the wash to get the dog, or spent Saturday morning shovelling mud out of the garage. By Sunday your shins are red, itchy and burning, and one scrape on your ankle is starting to look angry. That is floodwater rash in Tucson — and the question that matters is whether it's irritated skin or the start of an infection.
This guide covers what's in monsoon runoff, how to tell dermatitis from cellulitis, what to do at home, and when to walk in.
Open Monday–Saturday, 7:00 AM – 7:00 PM · Closed Sunday
15883 N Oracle Rd, Suite 101, Tucson, AZ 85739
Medically reviewed by Dr. Kiyan Rad, DO, board-certified internal medicine physician and Medical Director, Sanova Urgent Care
Runoff in a Tucson wash is not rainwater. It is whatever was on the ground upstream, moving fast. The CDC's floodwater safety guidance lists human and livestock waste, hazardous materials, and "germs and contaminants that can lead to illness" — here, add road oil, fertiliser, pool chemicals and three months of accumulated dust.
Two things happen to skin in that water. First, the chemical load irritates it directly, which is contact dermatitis — and the American Academy of Dermatology notes an allergic version can show up hours or even days after contact, which is why Sunday's rash can come from Friday's wade. Second, the water and grit strip the skin barrier, and any scrape, blister or cracked heel becomes an open door for bacteria — which is how a rash becomes cellulitis.
CDC's advice is simple and worth taking literally: the best protection is to stay out of the water, and if a wound touches it, wash with soap and clean water as soon as possible, cover it, and watch for redness, swelling or oozing.
Contact dermatitis is uncomfortable. Cellulitis is a bacterial infection that needs antibiotics. Drawn from MedlinePlus and CDC descriptions.
| Contact dermatitis | Cellulitis (infection) | |
|---|---|---|
| Timing | Hours to 1–2 days after exposure | Usually 1–3 days after a break in the skin |
| Look | Red, patchy, may blister; follows where the water touched | One area of spreading redness, often around a scrape; skin tight and shiny |
| Feel | Itching and burning | Pain, warmth, swelling, tenderness |
| Spread | Stays where the exposure was | Grows over hours; may send red streaks up the limb |
| Whole body | No fever | Fever, chills, feeling unwell |
| Treatment | Wash, cool compresses, hydrocortisone, antihistamine | Antibiotics — by mouth, or IV if it's moving fast |
A useful rule: itch is dermatitis, pain and warmth are infection. When both are present, treat it as infection until a provider says otherwise.
For itchy, red skin with no open wound, no fever and no spreading. Based on MedlinePlus guidance for contact dermatitis.
Wash it off. Lukewarm water and mild soap, as soon as you're out of the water. Rinse well. Wash the clothes and shoes too — the irritant is on them.
Cool compresses for 10–15 minutes, a few times a day, for the itch and burn.
1% hydrocortisone cream from the pharmacy, thin layer, twice a day on unbroken skin. An oral antihistamine at night if the itch is keeping you up.
Moisturise with a fragrance-free emollient once the acute burn settles — the barrier needs rebuilding.
Don't scratch, don't pop blisters. Both turn a rash into a wound, and a wound in floodwater country becomes an infection.
Give it 3–5 days. Dermatitis improves steadily. If it isn't improving, or it turns painful, warm or feverish, that is the moment to come in.
Come in without waiting the 3–5 days for any of these: a rash that is large or spreading fast; involvement of the face, eyes or groin; blisters that have opened; a scrape or cut that is red, warm, swollen or draining; a red streak running up from a wound; or a fever with any rash.
Prescription-strength topical steroids, or a short oral course for a widespread reaction, plus a look at whether anything else — a plant, a chemical, a fungal infection — is going on.
This is where being an urgent care with a treatment room matters. We can start antibiotics on site, the same visit — a first dose by mouth, an intramuscular injection, or IV for an infection that is spreading quickly — and send you home with the rest of the course. Per CDC, cellulitis that spreads rapidly or comes with fever needs prompt treatment; we also mark the edge of the redness so you can see whether it is retreating. See cellulitis and skin infection treatment.
We clean it properly, check for retained grit or debris, and update your tetanus if it's been more than five years for a dirty wound. CDC flags wounds contaminated with dirt or soil as the tetanus-risk category, and floodwater qualifies. Stitches and wound care.
Skin infections can turn systemic. Skip us and go to the emergency department or call 911 for:
If it's not on this list and you're unsure, call (520) 232-2525. We will tell you which door to use.
Most cases of floodwater rash in Tucson we treat were avoidable in the same three ways.
Even ankle-deep runoff carries everything upstream. If you must go in, boots and long pants, and rinse off straight after.
CDC's advice for flood clean-up is a waterproof bandage over any open skin, gloves, and a wash with soap afterwards. Scrapes on shins and hands are where cellulitis starts.
If you can't remember your last booster, it has probably been too long. Ask us at any visit and we'll bring it up to date.
We're at 15883 N Oracle Rd, Suite 101 — the walk-in clinic on the Oracle Road corridor with wound care and IV antibiotics in the building, for Oro Valley, Rancho Vistoso, Catalina, SaddleBrooke, Sun City Oro Valley and Marana.
$140 self-pay visit. Medicare, AHCCCS, Tricare and major plans accepted. Costs and insurance.
Dr. Kiyan Rad, Beth Brown FNP, and Kim Wall FNP. Meet the team.
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday–Saturday | 7:00 AM – 7:00 PM |
| Sunday | Closed |
Irritant contact dermatitis can appear within hours; allergic reactions more often show up 24 to 48 hours later. An infection in a scrape usually declares itself one to three days after the skin was broken.
No. Contact dermatitis is a reaction, not an infection, and doesn't spread person to person. Cellulitis is a bacterial infection in the skin but is not usually contagious either - the risk is to you, from it spreading deeper.
Yes, if it's itchy rather than painful, there's no open wound and no fever. Wash it off, use cool compresses and 1% hydrocortisone, and give it three to five days. Come in if it's not improving or turns painful, warm or feverish.
Yes. We evaluate the wound, start antibiotics on site - oral, intramuscular injection or IV for a fast-spreading infection - clean and dress the wound, and update tetanus. Walk in, no appointment needed.
If it has been more than five years since your last booster and the wound was exposed to floodwater, mud or debris, yes. CDC classifies wounds contaminated with soil or dirt as the higher-risk category. We give the booster at the visit.
A red line running up from a wound toward the body is a sign the infection is spreading along lymph channels. It needs same-day treatment - come in now, or go to the ER if it's moving quickly or you have a fever.
If a rash or scrape from the storm is getting worse instead of better, walk in. Wound care, antibiotics started on site and tetanus updated in one visit.
Sanova Urgent Care · 15883 N Oracle Rd, Suite 101, Tucson, AZ 85739 · Get directions
This article is for general information and does not replace an evaluation by a licensed provider. In an emergency, call 911.
Dr. Kiyan Rad, DO, is a board-certified internal medicine and obesity medicine physician and Medical Director of Sanova Urgent Care in Catalina, AZ, serving Oro Valley, SaddleBrooke and north Tucson. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson, President of the Medical Executive Committee at Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Northwest Tucson, and former Chief of Medicine at Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital. He earned his DO from Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine. On this blog, he shares practical guidance on urgent care, chronic disease, metabolic health and recovery after a hospital stay.
