<br />PAST FLOODS
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<br />whe~e flooding w~s often more extensl~e than In Aspen. In general,
<br />infonnatlon on p~st floods Is based on newspaper accounts, Inte~~lews
<br />wl1"h 10ng1"lme resIdents of the a~ea, and flow data publ ished In U.S.
<br />Geological Survey water supply papers.
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<br />SUMMARY OF HISTORICAL FLooOS
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<br />FLOOOOESCRIPTIONS
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<br />Aspen Is known 1"0 have ~ long hls1"ory of floods, the earlles1" of
<br />record occurring In 1880--1 ye~r ~f1"er the city was est~bl Ished. Large
<br />floods ~Iso occurred In 1884, 1914, 1915, 1917, 1918, 1921, and 1957.
<br />In general, the flood tha1" occu~~ed In June-July 1917 Is consIdered
<br />1"he most se~ere known In 1"he Aspen area. DurIng that flood, 1"he Ro~r-
<br />Ing Fo~k RI~er had an Ins1"antaneous peak flow of 3,170 cubIc feet pe~
<br />seoond. Major ea~ly-summer snowmel1" floods also occurred In the Aspen
<br />area In 1918 and 1921, when Instan1"aneous peak flows reached 2,380 and
<br />2,310 cubIc fee1" pe~ second, respec1"lvely. I n general, the 1917 and
<br />1918 floods were ~ery sImilar In magnItude. The most recent flood
<br />occurred In June and July 1957, Flow durIng that floodcres1"ed a1"
<br />1,910 cubic feet per second on 29 June. SO/I'le flooding occurred In
<br />June 1971 when flow In the Roa~lng Fork c~ested a1" 1,020 cubic feet
<br />per second, but damage was minor. Records a~allable for Cas1"le C~eek
<br />show f lows of 890 and 1,090 cubic feet pe~ second, respec1"l~ely, In
<br />1917 and 19\8. Flow records for Hun1"er Creek du~ing major flood periods
<br />are not a~allable,
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<br />~11"h the exception of flow da1"a for the RoarIng Fork RI~er at
<br />Aspen, little Is known about the flood of June-July 1917. Streamflow
<br />records show that flows greater than 1,000 cubic feet per second cOn-
<br />1"lnued fo~ a period of 28 days, and flows of about 2,000 cubIc feet
<br />per second were contInuous for 5 days. Flows greater than 1,500 cubic
<br />fee1" per second contInued fo~ a period of 16 days. During the 1918
<br />flood, flows greater than 1,000 cubIc fee1" per second continued for
<br />24 days. Flows greate~ th"n 1,500 and 2,000 cubIc feet pe~ second
<br />were continuous fo~ periods of 16 days and 3 days, respec1"lvely, As
<br />may be Judged from 1"he foregoIng, and, as pre~lously stated, the 1917
<br />and 1918 floods were ~e~y similar In magnl1"ude, differing p~lnclpally
<br />In their instantaneous peak flows. Newspaper accounts of 1"he 1918
<br />floods show that numerous bridges In and around Aspen were des1"royed
<br />o~ serIously damaged, and that, due to destructIon of st~eam crossIngs
<br />In OTher locall1"ies, the 1"own was cut off except for The ~allroad. At
<br />1"he peak of the flood, bridges stili sTanding had 2 or more feet of
<br />swIftly f lowing water o~er the decking. A pIpeline carryIng Hun1"er
<br />Creek water to the 1"own was washed out and the community had to get
<br />along on about one-half normal supply for almost 2 months. For a tl1llO,
<br />floodwaters threatened dest~uctlon of the Castle C~eek wa1"er main and
<br />totallossofm\lnlclpalwaTersupply. Wreckage of destroyed bridges
<br />lodged agaInst and 1"hreaterted destruction of o1"he~ bridges, and great
<br />effort was expended In f!oodflghtlng to sategua~d the structures
<br />1"hreatened.lnAspen,theeastendofMalnStrll@fwasundennlnedand
<br />washed away. Cotrrnerclal ST~uctu~es In this a~ei'J were 1"hreatened, i'Jnd
<br />hOOlElS In low-lyIng areas were surrounded by floodwater. Howe~er, lIttle
<br />~sidentlal damage occur~d except for lawns and Qardens. man~ of whIch
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<br />FLOOD RECORDS
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<br />Information on the earlIer hls1"orlci'J1 flOOdS 1"h/lt hll~e occurred
<br />In the study area Is ~ery limited because streamflow records were not
<br />being made, eye-witness a~coun1"s are not now a~allabre, and con1"empor-
<br />i'Jry records are practically nonexls1"ent. Specific info~matlon on more
<br />recen1" floods, except for streamflow data, is also ~ery Ilml1"ed because
<br />Aspen had a ~ery small population and was largely undeveloped at the
<br />time major floods occurred. News llccounts of early floods are non-
<br />>:!xlstent or ~>:!ry und",tallf;'d, and tjo not co~",r fl"",jlng In n,rill "'rM~
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