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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This study describes the nature of flash flood threats to western El Paso County and outlines the need for, composition of, and cost-sharing formula for an early warning system designed to save lives. I , The combined effects of development, topography and meteorology in western El Paso County create the potential for large scale flooding on Fountain and Monument Creeks and their tributaries. The two major topographic influences on the area's climate are the Rocky Mountains and the Palmer Divide. The combined influences of these two features give El Paso county some of the most diversified weather patterns in the state and provide for constant change. I , , . , ' The major creeks in the area are Founatin Creek and Monument Creek. Historical accounts of the Pikes Peak region make reference to many flash flood events since 1864. Not surprisingly, a majority of the events involve flooding on Fountain and Monument Creeks. Documented historical floods generally conform to the May through August thunderstorm/flash flood season. The most notable floods of the region include the floods of June 10, 1864; July 25, 1885; May 30-31, 1935, the largest rainstorm on record for Colorado during which twenty- four inches of rain fell on the town of Elbert; May 11, 1947; and, June 17, 1965, which is the largest known flood in Colorado for comparable drainage areas. Floodplain management and disaster service agencies at the state and federal level include the Colorado Water Conservation Board, The Division of Disaster and Emergency Services, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Local and regional programs include the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department, the El Paso County Office of Disaster Services, the National Flood Insurance Program the local floodplain management ordinances. The current flood warning system in the Pikes Peak region is run jointly by the National Weather Service and the EI Paso County Office of Disaster Services. Eighty rain gauges and thirteen stream gauges are located throughout the county and monitored by volunteer observers. In addition there are two automated flash flood alarms, one located on Founatin Creek at Cascade and the other on Monument Creek at Woodmen Road. EI Paso county and various municipalities within the county have flash flood emergency plans. In March of 1986 the Center for community Development and Design at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs held a symposium to discuss the threats and implications of flash flooding. Representatives a~tending formed the Pikes Peak Flood Hazard Task Force. Responding to the frequent need voiced by the Task Force for better information on the magnitude of the risk in