FLOOD00051

• County: Pueblo
• Title: The Arkansas River Flood of June 3-5, 1921
• Date: 2/5/1996
• Prepared For: Pueblo County
• Floodplain - Doc Type: Flood Documentation Report

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PRINCIPAL AREAS OF INTENSE RAINFALL.

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Mr. C. F. Burke, manager of the Blue Ribbon ranch, in secs. 2
and 3, T. 21 S., R. 65 W., stated that the storm appeared to come
from the northeast and was met by a storm from the southwest.
Mr. J. H. Farris, in sec. 34, T. 21 S., R. 67 W., stated that he
first noticed storm clouds in the northeast.' The storm appeared to
work to the west on the north side of the riyer, then south and
southeast, and when it reached his ranch was coming from the north-
west.
, Mr. E. C. Higgins, who }iyes at the crossing of the Penrose and
Canon City road over Eightmile Creek, 6 miles above, its mouth,
gaye the most complete account of the storm. He said the sky hud
been very cloudy the entire morning of June 3. From the mesa
above his house he ,could see for many miles along the ellst face of
the Wet Mountain runge, which lies south of Arkansas River. A
dense bank of black clouds lay along the top and sides of the range
during the morning, nnd about 1 p. m. it dropped down from the
mountains and seemed to push out along the mesa top. A similar
bank of clouds had hung in the hills to the north, in the direction
of Cripple Creek. These clouds gradually dropped lower, and by
1 p. m. it started to rain in th\l hills. Between 2.30 and 3 p. m. it
. began to rain at the Higgins ranch, and in a few minutes the rain
was pouring down in sheets so continuous that it was impossible to
see across the highway lane in front of the house.
Mr. Sim Wells, superintendent of the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co.'s
ditch, who lives near the mouth of Rock Creek, stated that at the'
point where the creek leaves' the high mesa lands the water came
over the edge of the mesa in g-reat sheets for a distance of half a
mile on each side.' " '
" The rain began in the foothills north of the narrow mountain valley
about 1 p. m. By 3 p. ni. it had spread over the upper and middle
parts of the valley, and between 5 and 7 p. m. it reached the lower
end near Pueblo. On Eightmile, Rush, and Rock creeks the hardest'
rain occurred between 3 and 4 p. m. j near,Pueblo it did not occnr until
10 or 11 p. m.' The rain continued 'with intermissions until after,
midnight. :

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PRINCIPAL AREAS OF INTENSE RAINFALL.

Thc ,rcathcr Unreal! rcconls (p. 13) indicate that for tile 48 hours
cIHlill" on thc afternoon of .June 4 the rainfall in the drainage basin
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uctwccn Canon Citv and Pueblo was from 3 to 5 inches and that It was
hc:n'iest in the nOl~thern part of this area, near Pikes Peak. Within
this general region there were smaller areas where the rainfall was
very intense but of short duration.

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