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<br />FLOODB (fF 196;'1 ls THr~ l'.'..TJ'Eil ~TA'n::;:s
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<br />Drll\'C'I'. .\.l:out ~ p.m., a dense' 111:t~:.:; of clouds dt'3cended and conce[de.d
<br />the top of D:t\\.soll Butte, IlHiJes oSm:thwrst of Castle Hockj and the
<br />little light rem:lining faded until it was dark black and frightening,
<br />a('("onlill~ to ::=OlllE' people, .\ nparhy rallehel'\ \\-ife described the
<br />intense quiet as :lWe30111e, Gut the calm did not last ,'cry long.
<br />The (lr!ngt' he'gall, not only Hear D<t\\":::;(J1i Bmte, but also ,It Hnspbel'l'Y
<br />:\fOlllltain. Ii 1l1i!l'!-1 !o tl1l' :')oHth, near Lark~IHl.r. The rain came c!()\\"!l
<br />harder than :IllY rain tIll' }()(,:11 l'p:-;idpllh ll:ui pn'!' ~{'en, and rll(' tl'llllwr:l-
<br />{llI'P dl'oppp(l rapidly until it was cold. The qlliet was shattered hy the
<br />terrihle rO:lr of \\.ind, r"ill, ,uHlI'H~hillg wate!'. Then the tlmdding- of
<br />huge houlder:;:, the snapping ;tlHltearing- of trees, aud the grinding- or
<br />cohbles and grl1\"el iiHTl';iSpd the tumult. The srnall natural ch;I.Hii('l~
<br />on the steep slopes ('oHId not carry the rnnoff; so water took shortcnts1
<br />following the line of least resistance, ('re(>1-\:5 o\'el.flowed, roads bec.ame
<br />l"l{-el'S, and fields hec>ame lakes-all in a flJatter' of minutes.
<br />The fio\\" Emili glutted r:'l\-ines and frolll fields and hillsides SOOIl
<br />]'eached East aud L-,Vest ["lhlll1 Creeks. The combined flo\ys in these
<br />C'reeks han~ heen {1escribed as awesome. fantastic, and unbelievable;
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<br />yet- Hone or rhe:::e ~upt'l'1ati\"t~:-; seern adeqn:\tc to d{'seribc what actualiy
<br />occHrred_ Larg-e wnY€'s, high \-eiocities, crosscnrrents, and eddies s,yept
<br />away trees, h~use.s, bridges, automobiles, heavy construction equip-
<br />ment~ and livestock. All sorts of debris and large volumes of sand and
<br />~rn'\"el were torn from the lmnks and he.d.s of the str-enms and. were
<br />dumped, ('aught, pll\stered, or huried along the channel and flood
<br />plains downstream. A local resident stated, "The banks of the creek
<br /><lisappean>d :.IS if the land ,,,as made of st1gar.'~
<br />The flood reached the South Platte Ri,'er and the urbau areas of.
<br />Littleton, Englewood, and Den,-er about 8 p.m. I-fere the rampaging
<br />wat(.l's pi{'ked up house trailers, large butane storage tanks, lumber, and
<br />()ther flot~am and smashc(l them against bridges and structures nearthc
<br />rin~r. :\fany of tliP paptly plug'Jrec1 bridges could not withstand the
<br />added pressure an,l washed out. Other bridg-es held, but they forced
<br />water on~I' appl'oa('h fills, (',Hlsing- extensiyc erosion. The flood plains
<br />carried and stOl'l.'d mUl'h of t ll(~ flood water, which inundated many
<br />110Jl1('S, bllSiu(':,ses, iudustries. railroad yards, hig-hways, and streets.
<br />The flood peak passcd throu:.rh Ih'Il\'el' during the night, and the
<br />immediaterrisis W3sO\-er l)y IIlOl'llin:!: hut those in the inundated areas
<br />were faced with a I-rere1tl("a~l ta:-;k. The lig-ht of day revealed the nature
<br />of the destruction-mud in en'ry Hook and (,l"ann)", so:rgy merchandise,
<br />warped bowling alleys, drowned animals. the loss of irreplaceable per-
<br />~on:.ll pOl:isessions, to name a few typ(>s. The colossal cieannp job, which
<br />would take months, began.
<br />Residents of the South Platte l{i \'er basin wiil not for~et the flood of
<br />.JUil€: 19G5_ Some stories BhlY oe. e.Aaggei::'lltd in tl'-aditional 1Vestern
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<br />SOUTH PL.A~TTE RIVER BASIN, COLORADO) J'T...;"NE 195.5
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<br />B3
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<br />style; but when IllOSt. of 14 inches of rain falls in about 3 hours, it is
<br />raining harJer than most people ha\"e en~r seen or v.-ill.c\"er Sl't>. \Yhen
<br />cne experiences a- storm like t.his and sees the consequences, exaggera-
<br />tion is difficult-and pointless. The scars on the landscapc, remains of
<br />damaged homes, piles of assorted debris, and deposits of s'llld and
<br />gravel along the st.reams arc not fictitious; they are TIlute e\-idence that
<br />a disaster did occur. The actions of some people Juring the flood \yere
<br />heroiC', or funny, or foolhardy: but practically cyel'YOIlC' in thr flooel
<br />area. worked hard and long to ~a\'e propPl'ty and to help other:::.
<br />
<br />~f:111 is proud of his efforts to control Hoods, but they haye u('-('n
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<br />rather pHny. He is learning, the hard ,Yfl.Y perhaps, what the tremen-
<br />dous forees of floodwater can do.
<br />The foregoing experieneE's and irnpressions are mainly t hose of
<br />people in the flood area bet.,.;een Larkspur and DC-Ig-e!", but similar
<br />events wcre experienced a few days earlier in the Greeley-Sterling
<br />~lre:J, :lnct during the next (} days along- Brjon and I(io\Y:l. Creeks and
<br />along the South Platte Ri,.er all the way to Nebraska.
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<br />DESCRIPTION OF THE FLOOD AREAS
<br />
<br />The floods of June ID65 in the South Platte Ri,'er basin occurred
<br />principally in four areas: the area 1101th of Greeley and north and
<br />west of Sterling; the Plum Creek and Cherry Creek basins; the Kiowa
<br />Cre-ek and Bijou Creek basins; and alol1fr the South Platte Riyer from
<br />Plum Creek to North Platte, Nebr. (fig. 1). The storms on June 14-15
<br />occurred in the Greeley-Sterling area and in the Bijou Creek basin
<br />southwest of Deer Trail. Lone Tree, Coal, Crow, and Pawnee Creeks,
<br />their tributaries, and Bijon Creek were in flood .June 14-16.
<br />The main flood on June 16 originated in the Plum Creek basin, south
<br />of Dem-er. The South Platte Rh'er and all tributaries flowing out of
<br />t he high mountains were not in flood but were carrying snowmelt
<br />water at about average or beloW" a,-ernge flows for June, The Cherry
<br />Creek basin had hig-h floods, but all inflow was stored in Cherry Creek
<br />Resermir, just upstream from Dem'er. Sancl Creek and Toll Gate
<br />Creek were also above flood stage on .J une 16.
<br />J(iOWlt and Bijou Creeks were at moderate to high flood stages 011
<br />.lunc Hi ano at extremely high stages in the headwaters late on June 17.
<br />Channel storage ancl other losses redueed the Kiowa Creek flood do\\'l1-
<br />stream from Bennett to such an extent that ,-ery little flow reached
<br />the South Platte RiYer. The rHerse occurred along the entire length
<br />of Bijou Creek because the flood peaks on East, :\Iiddle, and ".est Bijou
<br />Creeks combined to cause an outstanding flood. This flood reached the
<br />mouth of Bijou Creek at midmorningoll June 18.
<br />The fourth area flooded was along the 300-mile reach of the South
<br />Piatte Ri,'er from the mouth of Pium Creek, about i5 miies llpstream
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