Flooding in Boulder
- Thread starter Armchair_QB
- Start date
Here's another angle from the shot above of the Big Thompson flooding I-25 (with the SUV in the median).
I-25 is closed from Thornton to the Wyoming border (about 70 miles).
I-25 is closed from Thornton to the Wyoming border (about 70 miles).
Last edited by a moderator:
BrianGriffin
Active Member
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2008
- Messages
- 3,522
Wow. I remember being caught around St. George, Utah when a torrential storm hit -- they said it had been months since their last rain -- and was taken aback by how ill-prepared it was for flooding. Roads were flat, as opposed to slightly graded for water run-off to drains. Of course, the football stadium I was headed to was also not graded because the goal was for it to HOLD water when the sprinklers came on as rain was so rare and the climate so dry, the last thing they wanted was for water to run off the grass.
So it turned a storm we would have shrugged at down in the deep south into an epic nightmare.
I'm gathering that Boulder is a little bit like this as well.
Here's my question: Is Denver getting any of this?
So it turned a storm we would have shrugged at down in the deep south into an epic nightmare.
I'm gathering that Boulder is a little bit like this as well.
Here's my question: Is Denver getting any of this?
Chef2 said:
I've seen this debated locally. CSU has a home game too, and while Fort Collins itself has had little damage, travel is impossible. Field conditions should be fine. But will have water receded enough to justify? What about travel conditions -- can people get there even if they wanted to? And then what about the resources that would be at the games that could be used somewhere else or are already taxed from the past few days?
It's not an easy call.
No in downtown Denver. It has gotten a lot of rain, but not the flooding. Cherry Creek through Denver was raging and over its banks and the bike path along the creek was/is submerged in several feet of water. But the creek is below the main streets by several feet. I didn't see the South Platte, but there was no street flooding in downtown Denver. The devastation is happening near the foothills, where the rivers and creeks come flowing out of the mountains/canyons (Boulder, Lyons, Longmont, probably Loveland).
And it's now hitting Fort Collins. My sister texted me saying all bridges over the Poudre, which goes through downtown Fort Collins, are closed. She said she took her kids near the river and the river was about to go over the railroad bridge just behind College Avenue (for those who know the area). There were evacuations overnight in LaPorte and others living in the Poudre Canyon.
It did get bad in northeast Denver/Commerce City yesterday afternoon after retention ponds started overflowing and dams started breaching. Aurora to the east of Denver has gotten nearly as much rain as Boulder, which has gotten nearly 12 inches.
And it's now hitting Fort Collins. My sister texted me saying all bridges over the Poudre, which goes through downtown Fort Collins, are closed. She said she took her kids near the river and the river was about to go over the railroad bridge just behind College Avenue (for those who know the area). There were evacuations overnight in LaPorte and others living in the Poudre Canyon.
It did get bad in northeast Denver/Commerce City yesterday afternoon after retention ponds started overflowing and dams started breaching. Aurora to the east of Denver has gotten nearly as much rain as Boulder, which has gotten nearly 12 inches.
MileHigh said:
CSU's opponent -- Cal Poly -- is already here. If they weren't it might not even be an issue with I-25 closed. So in Fort Collins it's more of a travel and personnel issue. Boulder had more damage so there's that factor too.
Yeah, but it will be interesting to see if things get worse in Fort Collins as it sounds like it is since all bridges over the Poudre are closed, and Hughes is on the far west side of town.
It won't be a problem for Fresno State to get into Boulder (they're staying in Westminster overnight) and DIA is very operational (gotten about 1/12th what Boulder has gotten).
It won't be a problem for Fresno State to get into Boulder (they're staying in Westminster overnight) and DIA is very operational (gotten about 1/12th what Boulder has gotten).
I wonder how many folks are trapped in the backcountry right now.
Inky_Wretch said:
There are 20 people in Boulder unaccounted for at last count and at least two hikers stuck on Longs Peak.
The next worry is that retention ponds are full and the dams are getting weak and could rupture. Evacuation notice just went out for a neighborhood in Commerce City, which is northeast of Denver, between downtown and DIA.
It's just as bad further into the mountains. This is Estes Park, which is 20 miles or so upriver from Lyons, which took a major hit. Estes is at the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park.
Last edited by a moderator:
MileHigh said:
As a CSU alum and supporter, I'm sort of hoping they make the same call, although I don't think they will. But that might just be so I don't have to suffer through more bad football!
Seriously, though, I do think it's a responsible thing to do, even if it's to just not use more resources. The weather has brightened in Fort Collins, but the river is still well above flood stage and the roads are still closed. They even just opened up a shelter in north Fort Collins specifically for people who have been cut off from services.
