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<br /> <br />199' <br /> <br />RocIo)M~f'I.Nev.$ <br /> <br />Water, water everywhere <br /> <br />. <br />t <br /> <br />Fort Collins picks up <br /> <br />the pieces, but flooding <br /> <br />spreads to plains towns <br /> <br />.._ L "'"- <br />}f,dyM,.....;;;;,X.YS.O;;;;'WrWT <br /> <br />FORT cou.ncs - SurvivOR of <br />the SprinK Crcd flood shifted <br />from rcscuinR tn rt'buildinR <br />Wcdncsd.y, but a n('w phalanx of <br />mClUcing summer thunderstonns <br />$"'cpt acrtJSS !.hI' pla.ins. sw.ampinR <br />farmin):: communiti{'S and ruininR <br /><TOpS. <br />"'bih: FOrl Collins dUJ: uul from <br />the flol'ld thai killed five w(Ornen <br />Munday night. the drama shifted <br />tiO miles east. <br />Flash f1uod warn inKS blared in <br />I::I counti("S, indudinJ: metro Ocn- <br />\'('r. More- stonns Were forecast <br />IhroughtM th(' niWlt and into the <br />Wl'CK('nd. ~ <br />Se\'en.! to~"s in the brimminK <br />South Platte Ri\'L'T basin were <br />l"auj:ht b~' sllIprisc ill' floodwaters <br />f('d br IVITen!ial rain SCt'pcd _ <br />rather than surRed _ toward <br />th('l1l. Wddona, Sterlin/:. Atwood. <br />Rnmcr. Stoneham and other <br />lo~"s were inun<bted. <br />nouns uf families ....'ere ('\'acu- <br />a1l-d. Entite han'ests of corn and <br />SURaf bet.ts mil!' be lost. but no <br />deaths and few injuries were reo <br />poned. <br />Gov. Ro,' Romer flew O\'l."r the <br />tablt"top reltion - a day after a <br />helicopter tour of r3\'3ged Fort <br />Cnllins, Shongrass rangel3nd and <br />cht.'derboard fidds \\;th hardly a <br />....'ater SOW"ce in si~hl h3d suddenly <br />tx.'come a foam~~ brown 13~oon. <br />"There's 3 lot (If datrul!:(' out <br />ht're. more than I imagined," <br />Romer said, "There's a lot of <br />ranches. a lot of homes thai ha\'e <br />some real damage, Heck, there's a <br />river OO\\ing through Atwood." <br />No damage estimates were im4 <br />mediately available for the plains <br />towns. The governor said he <br />would add the area to the federal <br />disaster relief request he ..!ready <br />has submju~ for Fan Collins. <br />where damage is believed to ex. <br />ceed$50 million. <br />The plains flanking the South <br />Platte River in northeast Colorado <br />might not be OilS Oat ;as a billiards <br /> <br />, <br />I' <br /> <br />l <br />J <br /> <br />~(~ <br />tIw <br /> <br />;"t't.'d <br />.t'ast <br /> <br />outh <br />,";Iler <br /> <br />ltion <br /> <br />..y <br />{eta <br />ou...'C <br />midt <br /> <br />;t 0( <br />Ea" <br />v.ith <br />hthe <br />s.n<l <br />1M <br />ones. <br />- <br /> <br />nek <br />'""" <br />aYe< <br /> <br />;ooth <br />Uter. <br />[ in- <br /> <br />ma, <br />'~ the <br /> <br />. <br /> <br /> <br />.,.. <br /> <br />-. <br /> <br />*~~ <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />LnlWo~~~ <br />In Fort Collins, Scott Ruff, carrying daughter Sierra, 4, and their neighbor Mike l.oetz were wonied about their dam~ <br />aged trailers and salvaging their belongings. <br /> <br />table, but they're among the emp. <br />tiest places in Colorado and the <br />last where floods ,of this magni- <br />tude would be expected, <br />Rain had been expected. but its <br />intensity was fearsome even in a <br />region frequently battered by hail, <br />tornadoes and blizzards. <br />The avenues of destruction <br />hardly were the usual suspects. <br />Spring Creek. Pawnee Creek and <br />irrigation ditches nonnaUy are too <br />small to 6nd on a road map. <br />This week. they have spread <br /> <br />wider th3n the Mississippi in <br />spots, <br />In the fanning hamlet of Wel- <br />dona 80 miles northeast of Den- <br />"et; National Guanl helicopters <br />plucked 40 stranded citizens from <br />homes and businesRS lying under <br />up to 5 feet 0( wate[. <br />''Nobody was ill any great <Ian. <br />gea;" National Guard Maj. Gen, <br />WtIliam Westerdah! said. "People <br />were just patiently waiting until <br />someone could get them off their <br />rooftops,' <br /> <br />Over the past two days, up to 15 <br />inches of rain pununeled the ?aW4 <br />nee N"3tional Gn.ssbnds, Hun- <br />dreds of square miles drained into <br />bathtub-narrow Pawnee Creek. <br />The water then "'25 tnpped <br />behind a trestle of the Union f'acif. <br />icR.ai1road. <br />Much like conditions at Spring <br />Creek 36 hours earlier. flood W1~ <br />ten rose steadily behind the <br />earthen berm and finally surged <br />over the lOp. A 74mJle wide flood <br />spread through Sterling and At- <br /> <br />wood. <br />By 7 p.m., Sterling officials be- <br />gan cV3CUating pati~ts from the <br />local hospital's emergency room <br />toa nearby ~1. <br />After his helicopter tour, Romer, <br />a plains native. fanner and equip. <br />ment dealer, worried openly about <br />these nonnaUy dry, windblown <br />toWns and their precious crops, <br />Iulesburg, a farming center <br />along the South Platte near the <br /> <br />See~llConM <br /> <br />MORE nooo <br />COVDlACE <br /> <br />.....mFI3NIe':People <br />wt'lOlO5t/ta/l'eactto <br />tt.elr1OssIn~ <br />'- <br />89fht'f\&resodentS <br />W3tchedU'1edisastef <br />headlnc their wayll4A <br />.120WeIdona res., <br />der1ts evatl.lBted after <br />1'Iood$hrttowrlfl5A <br />.. Wet.....uthertT\8y <br />COI'ltinue to 4ampen <br />lIreabll\frtt1ilellSA <br />. MLX tleatJnc Ydlm <br />Mbyt/'agedy<sgainm <br />1'IooclonslaugtlVI7A <br />.Fal'Tlltyrnournslost <br />&ral'ldmottleflllA <br />.Par1l.re5ldentSmay <br />get to see home$ as <br />early as today/I.... <br />8 Damage to csu~. <br />bnlry.~reache$ <br />IOtO the 1I''\dhonsl2OA <br />. 'Angels'oometo <br />l'eSCUeoffamrtyJ2M <br /> <br />RnwllDn UI!ln"'~ C!'nft"";"!Il1 U...... ~....II_... ...._ ~..........~...... ......." <br /> <br />f <br />