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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.:; THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921.
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,:;1"By RoBERT FowNsBEEan;1 EDWARD E. JONES.
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niTRODUCTION.. .

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. Between June 2 and Jiule 5, 1921, heavy rains of an intensity to
justify the term." cloud-bursts" in the foothill region of the Arkansas
Valley in Colorado caused the severest flood in the valley since its .
settlement;' Flood conditions prevailed during the entire period, but
there were three distinct floods in the upper valley. The first flood
wascausec1 by heavy' ram. on Dry Creek just above Pueblo on the
night, of June 2j the second .wasthe main flood, which occurred dur-
ing the night of 'June 3 jand the third \Vas that due to the breaking of
theSchae:fferreservoir, on'Reaver Creek,on the morning of June 5.
The area considered in' this report is shown in Plate 1. .
The flood was remarkable for the very small area. covered by the
.rainfall that was its chief cause, and for the swift rise of the river
to. an unprecedented stage and. its almost equally rapid falL.; The
swift rise and fall indicated veryd great flood discharges of the
tributary streams, which drain II. mountainous country of steep slopes.
The total discharge of the main flood was less than 90,000 acre-feet.
: Immediately after the flood the United States Geological Survey
undertook an investigation of its causes and results, and the field
work was begun as soon as conditions permitted.' An examination!
, . was made of all the streams within the' area affected by the flood tol
procure data on maximum run-off in the' foothill region and thel
effect of this tributary run-off upon the :main flood. The maximum
discharge of each stream. was determined from the slope shown by
well~defined high-watermarks arid from the average of several croSs
sections.:.'As there are no regular Weather' Bureau stations in the
area,. especial care was taken to obtain from iocal residents as reliable
statements;as possible regarding rainfall and time of flood flows of
eachstrel1m.,;From the field data unO. from infonnation obtuinecI"
from various reliable sources it has been possible to show the cause
of. the flood. and the cause'of its rapid rise and full at Pueblo. In
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