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<br />page 2 <br /> <br />Flood Sea.sons <br /> <br />Sterling always has been threatened by floods. In the past, several <br /> <br />floods have occurred along the South Platte River and Pa.\mee Creek in <br /> <br />the Sterling area. A few of these major floods are: <br /> <br />June 1921; May 1935 (five peaks, the second was highest); June 1938; <br /> <br />June 1942 (railroad overflow bridge washed out); September 1951; <br /> <br />and June 1965 (worst flood of record). <br /> <br />As you notice, the most fre~uent flooding occurs dw"ing June, but <br /> <br />in general, flooding along the South Platte River occurs from March <br /> <br />through September. <br /> <br />Flood Description <br /> <br />Floods in the Sterling area normally occur under nonice-affected <br /> <br />conditions. Ice jams, however, are possible on the South Platte River <br /> <br />even though their historical fre~uency of occurrance is rare. <br /> <br />Irrigation works also influence flooding in the Sterling area by <br /> <br />diverting flood waters, by levee failure, or by combinations of both. <br /> <br />Flood waters on the South Platte River and Pawnee Creek in the <br /> <br />vicinity of Sterling can result from intense localized rainfall or general <br /> <br />rains, either of which may be augmented by snowmelt. The intense rain- <br /> <br />storm floods result from inten~e rainfall over areas or relatively small <br /> <br />areal extent. These storms can produce extremely rapid concentrations <br /> <br />of flood waters and ensuant rapid rises in stream levels. Because of <br /> <br />little warning time prior to streams attaining flood stages, this type <br /> <br />of storm can produce floods which are extremely hazardous. This type <br /> <br />of flood produces high peak discharge on tributaries in the general <br /> <br />vicinity of the rainstorm. The discharge, however, attenuates rapidly <br /> <br />On the South Platte River downstream from the contributing tributaries <br />