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I I I I I I I I I 1 I 1 I I I I 1 I 'I North St. Vrain & St. Vrain Creeks Floodplain Update Town of Lyons North St. Vrain & St. Vrain Creeks Floodplain Update Town of Lyons 1941 FLOOD 1949 FLOOD Excerpts from the Longmont Times-Call Monday, June 6, 1949 35 Rescued As St. Vrain Goes Rampage Here ALL BRIDGES BETWEEN LONGMONT AND LYONS MADE IMPASSABLE BY WEEK-END FLOODS - HOMES, HIGHWAYS AND FIELDS INUNDATED - RIVER CLIMBS TO 6,700 SECOND FEET - WATER LINE DAMAGED AND TRAINS DELAYED. A spring flood, which cause the SI. Brain River to burst its banks, made all bridges between here and Lyons useless, delayed trains, inundated highways, field sand houses and necessitated the evacuation of 35 men women and children, struck here with force late Saturday night and early Sunday. The river had reached flood stage again Monday afternoon. As a result of weekend heavy rain in this district and in the mountains, the St. Vrain went on rising slowly. At 11 p.m. Saturday night the local chapter of the American Red Cross removed several families from their homes southwest of town near the Westem Solvents Plant when water surrounded them. No. 30, the southbound C. & S. was several hours late Sunday and arrived here at 8 a.m., ... It was held until 1 p.m. while a stretch of track near the Golden West mill, which had been undermined by the water was re-inforced. Two carloads of limestone were dumped along the track where the water was waist-deep. St. Vrain Creek east of Lyons, 1941. Water also flooded over Highway 87 (Longmont-Denver road) just south of the First Avenue tracks, inundating severai stores and filling stations. Longmont Times - Call Monday June 23, 1941 A total of almost three inches of rain fell here during the storm, according to records at the experimental station of the sugar company. During the high point Saturday night, the St Vrain was flowing some 6,700 second feet of water, Commissioner Carl Maier reported. Flood stage is from 2,000 to 2,500 feet when the river starts leaving ns banks. In summer flash floods, previously, as high as 10,000 second feet had been measured. The 'Old Iron Bridge,' east of Lyons and just below the Longmont filtration plant at the Ruski place finally succumbed to flood water. This bridge had withstood many floods over the years, but always remained firm until Sunday morning when it gave way in the middle. 51. Vrain Floods Roaring out of darkness split by almost continuous lightning and thunder, thousands of tons of water swept down the North and South SI. Vrain canons early Sunday moming causing the flood which also took three homes away, damaged roads, flooded a half dozen houses in Lyons, wrecked bridges and inundated farm lands... L.T. Burgess, chief hydrographer from the state enginee~s office, and J.E. Whitter, division engineer for the Platte area, took slope measurements and found that at the peak of the flood the depth was 8.07 feet compared with a normal of 3.26. At 2:14 a.m. Sunday and for two hours the St. Vrain was measured at 8,900 second feet. Today it measured 595 second feet average. The average for Sunday was 2,000 second feet. The river rose to 8,900 second leet in 30 minutes. The highest ever registered previously was 9,600 second feet, Commissioner Maier said. The date of this record rise was not available. An approach to the bridge on South Sunset was washed out, closing the road. The south approach to the bridge on the Hoover Road went out Sunday morning and widened during the day. One of the abutments of what is known as the Neighbors bridge was washed out and the south portion of this bridge fell in. During the flood tons of silt, sand and rocks were carried down both the North and South SI. Vrains as well as poles, lumber and trees. The Crane Hollow bridge west of Hygiene was strongly supported by piling, but trees and other debris drove against the piling until it finally gave way and another bridge was gone. East of Longmont, the bridge on the County Line at the Old Dixon Mill was washed out. Floodplain Information Report 16 K:\356001004\FLOODPLAIN INFORMA TlON REPORT.doc Floodplain Information Report 17 K:\35600IOO4IFLOODPLAIN lNFORMATtON REPORT.doc June 1998 June 1998