Five people have been confirmed dead because of the flooding that continues to inflict Colorado. More than thirteen hundred more are missing, meaning the death toll could still go up. All of the dead and most of the missing are from Boulder and Larimer Counties.
Rains began on last Sunday and have not let up since. The worst of the rains came on Wednesday and Thursday, however, every day a few more inches fall. This has caused daily flash flooding. Over the last week, many areas have received their yearly rain fall, or more. It could be days before the rains truly let up.
Fifteen counties have been declared disaster areas. Most of the flooding had occurred along the Rocky Mountains, from Fort Collins south through Boulder, Denver, Aurora, and Colorado Springs down to Canon City. Now Eastern Colorado
is now dealing with flooding of it's own, as the rivers down stream swell.
Entire towns have been surrounded by the waters. Some towns have
literally been cut in half by rivers that spilled over their banks. Several communities are without potable water and are being told to boil water before drinking it, for their own safety. At least fifteen hundred homes have been destroyed, with eighteen thousand damaged. Most of the damaged ones had their basements flooded.
The National Guard has rescued more than two thousand people, who had been trapped by the raging waters. Over a thousand more are waiting for rescue. Nearly fifteen thousand have been forced to evacuate as waters continue to rise in many areas. The continued weather has made it impossible for helicopters to stay in the air, hampering rescue efforts.
Some towns have been without power or phone since Thursday, adding to the discomforts they are facing. The lack of communications is also keeping the missing count high, as many can't let anyone know where they are.
Roads throughout the region are still under water, damaged, or completely destroyed. In some towns they have simply become secondary rivers. This makes travel in some areas dangerous to impossible. As many as seventy highway bridges are damaged or destroyed. It could be weeks to months before all the roads can be repaired or replaced. The roadwork along will cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
