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<br />railroad tracks to keep flood waters fro~'entering a large portion of <br />the city's residential area. Moreover, advance warning of the arrival <br />of the flood crest at Sterling permitted evacuation of approximately <br />50,000 head of cattle from feed lots located in the path of the flood. <br />Similarly, greater flood losses were prevented at other urban locations <br />along the lower South Platte River by timely warnings which permitted <br />erection of temporary protection or evacuation of flood hazard areas. <br /> <br />VI. FLOOD DAMAGES <br /> <br />25. COLLECTION OF FLOOD DAMAGE ESTIMATES <br /> <br />, <br />, <br />f <br />~ <br /> <br />a. The estimated flood damages presented ,in this report <br />represent the effects of major flooding along 1,200 miles of streams <br />in the South Platte River basin which inundated approximately 253,000 <br />acres of agricultural lands and which directly affected 30 cities <br />or towns in the basin having a population totaling over one million <br />persons. The flood damages inflicted reflect the effects of flood <br />discharges as high as 466,000 cubic feet per second on the normally <br />dry Bijou Creek and 154,000 cubic feet per second on Plum Creek upstream <br />from metropolitan Denver. Plum Creek, during the previous 17 years of <br />gaging record, had a maximum discharge of'3,80Q cubic feet per second <br />and on numerous occasions recorded no flow. The maximum discharge on <br />Plum Creek in 1964 was 290 cubic feet per second. The flood damage <br />estimates include the direct costs and damages and the associated, <br />economic effects resulting from physical destruction and damages. <br />Direct costs also include the cost of flood fighting and post-flood <br />efforts, of policing, patrolling, alleviation of human suffering, and <br />preservation of public health. <br /> <br />b. No estimates have been made of .the extra man-hours of work <br />required because of the flood, nor of the lost productivity caused by <br />work interruptions, traffic delays, and extra hours required to perform <br />normal activities. Such items as troops exceeding battalion strength <br />assigned to patrol flooded areas in metropolitan Denver, 1,000 extra <br />men put to work on initial clean-up of flooded areas, the use of C-119 <br />Flying Boxcars to ferry emergency supplies to the stricken area, and <br />Red Cross relief expenditures of almost $900,000 for immediate relief <br />of over 1,400 families or individuals in Denver alone can only hint <br />at the total amount of related flood costs. In an effort to prevent <br />outbreaks of encephalitis, $300,000 was spent to spr~ more than <br />194,000 acres of flooded land, nevertheless, numerous cases were <br />reported. Many communities had to rely on bottled water supplies, <br />and the loss of utilities resulted in widespread and prolonged <br />disruption of normal activities. The destruction or damage to major <br />traffic arteries in metropolitan Denver and throughout the basin <br />caused severe disruptions of normal traffic movement and commerce. <br />Moreover, the disruptive effects of the initial damage and destruction <br />of bridges, highw~s, and streets were compounded by repeated flooding <br />in July and by damage to the temporary crossings constructed after <br />the June floods. <br /> <br />18 <br />