FLOOD02150

• County: Routt
• Community: Steamboat Springs
• Stream Name: Yampa River
• Basin: Yampa/White
• Title: Steamboat Springs Community File
• Date: 1/1/2001
• Prepared For: CWCB
• Prepared By: CWCB
• Floodplain - Doc Type: Community File

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Sub,1lpine \'!atersh"lls i,~ Colorado (Includes \Vest Walton, North Fish and Soda

Cred,s), and precipitation record" in the backup data for the same pu1:Jlica-

tion indicntes that about 2.00 inches of rain must fall in the August to

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October period for any appreciable amount of runoff to occur in these

strcaC'S. LOSS rates adapted for the 100- Spy and SOO-year general rain

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floods Here 1.60 inc:.C's initial loss and 0.15 inche per hour constant loss

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on the Yampa River, and 2.00 inches initial loss "ithO.lS ,inch per hour

constant loss on the tributaries above Steamboat Springs. A lower initial

loss w,s ueed on the 'it, ,pet r.i':er because of a lower density of vegetation.

The resul tinG fl0l1S arc given on Table III.

There is little information available on cloudburst floods in the

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Steampoat Springs area. The maximu11l rainfall that occurred in 1921 may

have been a cloudburst type but its duration" is unknown. The maxim\lm three

hour rainfall at Craig was 2.04 inches (Chart I,), A 24-hour rainfall of

3.24 inches was recorded on Augus to 10, 1925 in Heeker;' Colorado, Thus,

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it would appear that a cloudburst flood is a possibility at Steamboat

Springs.

The cloudburst criteria lias developed from the "Probable Haximum

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Thunderstorm Precipitation Estimates for Southwest States", dated August

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1972. A 40 percent value of PHP point rainfall for Steamboat Springs

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plotted at ahollt the 500-year frequency on a 3-hour rainfall frequency

curve developed for eLlig, Colorado (the nearest recorded). This was then

assumed adequate for u;-.e ilS a cloudhur-st SPS. The loss rates used were

identical to those used in the general rain sitnation. The ratios of the

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