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<br />H!STORY OF FLOODING
<br />
<br />Little flood histo(y is available for The Slough at Severance.
<br />
<br />DATE:
<br />
<br />tnterviews with local residents indicated that the only floods of any
<br />
<br />July 11,
<br />June 21,
<br />June 15,
<br />July 15,
<br />July 25,
<br />May 8-9,
<br />May 13~14,
<br />May 6-8,
<br />Jun" 11_12,
<br />June 6,
<br />June 9,
<br />May 29,
<br />July 24,
<br />May 7,
<br />
<br />consequence over the last 20-30 years occllrred during the summers of
<br />
<br />1971 or 1972, 1975, and 1977.
<br />
<br />The flood of either 1971 or 1972
<br />
<br />resulted from about four inches of rainfall 1n the basin upstream from
<br />
<br />Severance. The plugged culvert at the Great Western Railroad south of
<br />
<br />Severance aggravated the problem. Flood damages w"re mostly to crops
<br />
<br />since the land use along The Slough is mainly agricultural. The
<br />
<br />floodwater went over County Road 74 in both 1975 and 1977 according to
<br />
<br />Table 2
<br />
<br />TOTAL PRECIPITATION
<br />
<br />1944
<br />1947
<br />1949
<br />1954
<br />1955
<br />1958
<br />1961
<br />1969
<br />197<'1
<br />1972
<br />1974
<br />1975
<br />1977
<br />1978
<br />
<br />2 . 80"
<br />2.70"
<br />2.80"
<br />1.98"
<br />1.95"
<br />2.80"
<br />2.74"
<br />2,42"
<br />3,62"
<br />2.75"
<br />2.96"
<br />3.4<'1"
<br />2.66"
<br />1.96"
<br />
<br />the Severance Mayor, Mr. Richard Tallman. He also stated that the
<br />culvert beneath the road was plugged ilnd debris forced agilinst the
<br />
<br />NeWSpaper articles from the windsor "BEACON" are presented here
<br />as typical examples of storms whiCh caused flooding and d<lmage to the
<br />
<br />fence caused backwater in this area until the debris was removed from
<br />
<br />Windsor <lrea,
<br />
<br />located three and one-half miles northeast of windsor.
<br />
<br />"Windsor was the soggy site of over ~ lnches of r<lin during
<br /><I few hours Monday night. And there's probably no way in the
<br />world to drain that much water out of a flat town thilt fast,
<br />Flooding was WO(st 1n the west end of town, ..."d the ~Iajvr
<br />pileup of water was due to the slow drainage of water down 7th
<br />Street from elm On south out of town. This is Windsor's $182,1011
<br />problem, still unsolved.
<br />Water streamed acruss Main Street from the $chools and
<br />farmland, some gushing down Ninth, the rest dO"/n Tenth Street..
<br />That on Tenth divided a blOCk further south, some runnlng
<br />",astdown Elm the remainder continuiny southward and out the
<br />ditch, theor~tically to go under the Whitney ditch and through a
<br />tile to the poudre.
<br />But the tile i5n't that big and quite a lake ilccumul"ted on
<br />hrmland north of the Whitney Ditch.
<br />Many basements were flooded, in varying degrees; there
<br />wasn't a low spot in any yard or alley in town in whiCh water
<br />wasn't standing, for a good part of the "'...ening. Them" song for
<br />the night W<lS th"gutteral croak of frogs-everyl'ihere.
<br />By morninq most of the water hO!d drained away. But the
<br />pumping of basements continued throughout TuesdilY, and the Gale
<br />Schaue(man home, justoutslde of town at 7th and Elm, appeared to
<br />be loc<lted on the edge of a lake.
<br />Windsor's downpour, measured at 3.25 inches, \oIas more than
<br />that 1n neighboring cities, and farmland around Windsor also
<br />
<br />the fence,
<br />
<br />Flooding in the Severance area from The Slough has not been
<br />
<br />frequent, probably because of the irrigation development in the basin
<br />
<br />consisting of canals and re.servoirs. Systems such as these have a
<br />
<br />ldry" ",r[""t ""PU" flooo,; ;,,,vlu<,j d .,;l""t r""u.."""'" int"'Vdi but ndv"
<br />
<br />little effect upon floods with a longer recurrence interval such as
<br />
<br />the 10~-yca r. J.. fals.. .senSu of secur i ty occur sin .such si tua tions.
<br />
<br />Specific information on flood~ that have occurred in the study
<br />
<br />or"a is v..ry limited becduse streamflo\ol records have not been made,
<br />
<br />eye-witness accounts are tew, and contemporary records dre practically
<br />
<br />nonexi:'ltent.
<br />
<br />In general, information on past floods is based on
<br />
<br />ne\olspa[)er accounts and interviews with longtime residents of the area.
<br />
<br />The fa llo\o'i n'J table presents da ~es since :942 when r <linfdll exceeded
<br />
<br />1. 7~" at the Windsor we.:Jthe~ station:
<br />
<br />,
<br />
<br />That portion of The Slough covered in this report is
<br />
<br />Thursday, June 8, 1972, Windsor BEACON
<br />OVEH THRE~ INCH RAINFALL SWAMPS WINDSOR MONDAY
<br />
<br />8
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