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<br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />From "The Meeker Herald" <br />Thursday, June 12, 1952 <br />WHITE RIVER ON RAMPAGE <br />DOING MUCH FLOOD DAMAGE <br />Hot Weather and Heavy Snow Pack of Last <br />Winter Bring River to Highest Stage On Record <br />A combination of unusual weather for early June coupled with the heavy snows of <br />last winter, has brought the White river to the highest stages in many years, if not an all <br />time high. In talking to some of the Old Timers they feel it has been this high before, but <br />others are doubtful. At least there is no argument that it is high and doing plenty of <br />damage up and down the valley. <br />Usually this section has a frost about the first week of June, which slows up the <br />run-off in the higher country of the White River forest area, but this year we not only <br />have escaped the June frost, but the weather has been unusually hot, reaching a high this <br />past week of 87 degrees. <br />The river started rising early last week and by Wednesday it was getting up to flood <br />stage and out of its banks in many places. The warm weather along with some wind <br />increased the flow and by the end of the week it was out over most of the low lands and <br />starting to do some damage. The river has continued to rise each day up IIDtil Tuesday of <br />this week. It is now thought it has reached the peak, but with the amount of snow pack in <br />the high country it won't recede very fast. <br />Port Franklin, just east of town, has suffered probably the greatest individual <br />damage of anyone on the river. The water is up to the back door of his home, and the <br />bridge across the river at his home place went out the first of the week, when the <br />abutments were washed away. He has been fighting ever since last Friday to save another <br />bridge that crosses the river to his upper place. This bridge known to many as the Ernwein <br />bridge has been hit hard by the flood water. Trucks have been dumping tons of big rock to <br /> <br />-6- <br /> <br />save the bridge and it looks like they are going to win, but it has been a tough job. Part of <br />the corrals and shed at the home ranch have been washed away. <br />Another bridge went out on South Fork this week at the AI White place, and they <br />had a hard time saving the bridge over to the Dortch place just below White's. The Buford <br />bridge over North Fork is closed to traffic and the wooden bridge over the South Fork is <br />right at water level. <br />The torrent of flood water has eaten away at rich farm land along its channel and <br />in some places is threatening to change its channel. All the river bottom meadows are <br />flooded from Buford to Rangely. What is true on the White river is true all over the <br />western slope. The Yampa river has washed out part of the railroad grade near Hayden <br />and was over the highway in two places. The Colorado river and Gunnison have reached <br />flood stages, but the Colorado has been partly controlled by the storage reservoirs on its <br />headwaters, which has saved milch damage to the land along its banks. The high water has <br />demonstrated what reservoir flood control can do a year like this: storing the water also <br />preventing the flood damage. <br />Photo caption for the above article: <br />The above picture was taken last Saturday before the river reached its peak. It <br />shows the river over its banks and flowing thru the barns and corrals at the Franklin ranch <br />just east of town. The bridge over the river which went out, was just beyond the trees in <br />the background. <br />