The death toll from the Colorado flooding remains at eight, now that all those unaccounted for have been found. More than 1,000 people were unaccounted for during the peak of the flooding. On person remains missing and is presumed dead.
Massive flooding over 2,000 square miles left 1,500 homes destroyed and more than 19,000 damaged. Also 200 miles of roads and highways and 50 bridges were damaged. The floods were also the cause of an oil spill of 27,000 gallons from flood-damaged storage tanks in the northern Colorado oil fields into the South Platte River.
The catastrophic flooding was the result of a cold front that stalled over Colorado and clashed with humid monsoonal air from the south. This caused heavy rain, which dumped 12 inches on September 12 and 17 inches on September 15 on Boulder County. This is equivalent to what Boulder County usually gets in a full year.
Many homes and families were isolated due to washed out roads and bridges. Boulder Creek, which regularly flows at around 150-200 cubic feet per second, exceeded 5,000 cubic feet per second.
“The Lord is teaching men that there are limits to His forbearance. In fires, in floods, in earthquakes, in the fury of the great deep, in calamities by sea and by land, the warning is given that God’s Spirit will not always strive with men.” Manuscript Releases, Vol. 3, page 215
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