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ARKANSAS RIVER BASIN, COLORADO, KANSAS, NEW MEXICO 1;)13 ARKANSAS RIVER ABOVE JOHN MARTIN DAM The area above John Martin Dam has been affected by flooding on ml\ny occasions. F100ds have been generated in the headwaters of tributaries such as the Purgatoire River, Fountain Creek, and the SI. Charles River. At other times, 1921 for example, flooding occurred as a result of storm. on and adjacent to the main stem of the Arkansas River. In 1965 the major flooding was between Fountain Creek and La Junta. FOUNTAIN CREEK BASIN The upper Fountain Creek area was first hit by intense rain and hail on June 14. Fountain Creek peaked at 2,890 cfs (cubic feet per second) at the Security gaging station (pI. 1) and then receded until the storms of June.16. Because of inflow from tributaries downstream from Security, the lleak flow at Pueblo was increased to 11,000 cfs on June 15. Sand Creek !l\so overflowed on June 14, causing heavy damage to roads and bridges. On June 16 the intense rain on Monument Creek north of Colorado Springs (as much as 14 in. near Palmer Lake) caused a second and hi!ller peak flow of 8,260 cfs at Security late that night. This peak decrease~ to 3,990 cfs at Pueblo because the rain was concentrated in the upper part of the basin. However, the major flooding down the full length of Fountain Creek was caused by the greater storms of June 17 north and east of Colorado Springs. The peak flows on June 17 were 21,500 cfs at Security and 47,000 cfs at Pueblo. Jimmy Camp Creek, which enters Fountain Cte.k 5.5 miles downstream from Security, had a peak flow of 124,000 cfs oJi.tliis day. Fortunately this peak occurred a few hours before the peak flo~lIr Security. Had the two peaks coincided, the effects downstream at PueWe> could have been disastrous. The peak discharge on Fountain Creek at Pueblo (47,000 cfs) exceeded the record floods of 1921 and 1935 and destroyed the gaging station. Reduction of the peak flow from at least 124,000 cfs below Jimmy Camp Creek to 47,000 cfs at Pueblo can be ex- plained only by attenuation resulting from flow through miles of wooded flood plains and meandering channels. ARKANSAS RIVER-FOUNTAIN CREEK TO LAS ANIMAS Timing of the flood crests down the Arkansas River from Pueblo to Las Animas is shown by the discharge hydrographs at gaging stations (fig. 6). Records for the station near Nepesta are not available because the station was destroyed by the flood. The peak discharge of 50,000 cfs on June 18 at the gaging station on the Arkansas River near Avondale resulted mainly from the flood crest from Fountain Creek. No other high flows of conse- quence were recorded there during the flood period. The highest peak discharge determined on the main stem of the Arkansas River above John Martin Reservoir was 104,000 cfs at a site 1.2 miles downstream from Chico Creek. This peak flow resulted from nearly coin- .....i,ipntaol t;tTlino- nfthp, flnncl rrp"lt mnvino- nown th~ Ark:::lnSHs, River and the