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I , In plac"s ':;"e~" :.ails,:;on"s hy i" bar-ks several fe",:: in depth. CtJRRENTPLOODSlTUATION Old timers say that no such .torm has occ~rred in this s"ctionof the state in years. !ti'ratherdiffi- culttoesti"",tetheamountofdamagcss\lstained,butit iscertainlymcre than our readers hillle any ide"... Intrinsic value of property destroyed may not be so much b~t it must be remembered that many of the...features cannot be well sP'llCed at a resort so poP\ll"r as Manitou... . . . Developments in the Flood Plains Plate 2 is an index map for Plates 3 through B which show the study area li~its and flood plains considered in this report. The flood plains arc narrOW with e~tensive developments of homes, retil.il b,,"ine~$cs, ind\lstries, ,,",abile ho"'" parks, and tourist att"<lc- tions and faCilities. ~ny of these urb~n improvements encroach on thestrea:ns. In t""",ai,^, business district of Manitou springs, a wide variety of businesses have been established on the banks of the str~ams and, in many instanee6, ov"r the streams. ~anitou Sp~ings' city hall and fi~~ station are located on Fountain Creek's right bank at the corner of Manitou Avenue and El Paso Bouleva~d. Other major facilities located in the Fountain Creek flood plain are the Red Rook Shopping Center and the EI Paso County Community College. Transportation facilities within the flood plains include portions of u.s. Highway 24 and 24 By-Pass (~idland Expressway), along with num~rous city streets. MaYll,1947 Accoraing to the Colorado Springs Ga~~tte-Telegram: "Cloudburst in Ute Pass, ~raldo Canyon, and williams Canyon early Saturday night sent a torrent of water through Manitou Springs... doing.. large amount of damage to ~treets and bridges." A wave of water descenaed on the town from Ute Pass, it ca~ried away a number of ~11 wooden bridges. The stream overflowed the banks in "lacss and water w'~ ~~_ ~,,__,_~ ~n~~ ~ ~ ".. r _ ~~u .~""+U. ~~_~ "ig" in ..~n~tou AVenue. At a number of places it spread over the sidewal~s and flowed into basements of business establ' ",'-"--~.,, .. ~". "'~..~ ...co~.age camps on low groun~ in cast Xanito~ Springs ~nd west Colorado Springs were flooded...the ~11 bridges washed out in Manitou Sp~ings were carriea downstream.. . the" "iloo un be~ br'" . r r .orc a ~"ge.. .the da".. of bridges broke away and passing under the bridge, tearing ~ome large trees as they did... GreenwiCh Village and Cottonwood Camps Were covered with fram six inches to two feet of water...bridgee on 210t ~nd 30th Streets waehed out...8th Street bridge in precario~s cOn~ dition...many moto~iet$ evacuatcd...uae mains broke...water and electrical services interrupted...estimated damages in e>:cee_" of $100,000 for streets, b~idqes, and roads. Manitou Springs' fire chief...said it waa the wo~st flood he haa witnessed in 21 years. Ob~t:ructions to floodflows Obstructions, r.atural and man-marle, within the floodways, i~r~R fl~flow~, ~r~~tin~ ~cKw~ter and increased heiQht$. Debris washing downstream during floods often collect against briages or within ~estricted flow areas, ~educing the waterway openings and impeding the floodflow. This creates a damming effect ana, depend~ ing on the degree of clogging, causes g~eater backwater aepths wit~ increased ove~bank flooding. Water pressure on embankments and bridges can result in stress damage or total destruction of the structure involved. A pronounced increase 1n rlow velocit1eS usually occurs downstream from obstructions, thus increasing the flood's damage potential. Natural obstructions to floodflow occur throughout the flood plains ~he~e trees, brush, and other vegetation encroach , "