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We were able to spend a solid 14 days in the states – the most ever since we’ve left Colorado in November 2010 – and we were welcomed with more rain than what Colorado has seen in years. Interstate 25 was closed Thursday evening (Sept 12), 4 hours after we landed in Denver. We were likely the last car to drive down i-25 for the next 48 hours. News spread internationally – we were getting phone calls and emails from friends in Sydney asking about it! Crazy. My cousins in Boulder had their basement flooded (picutres below). |
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Comment from my Uncle Joe on September 13, 2013: All safe. Water in basement, but everything we cared about up and out. The family and neighbors were superstars. Came close to being unscathed, but not complaining in what they’re now calling a 500-year flood. I welcome the opportunity for focusing on what’s important, and redoing the basement with the boys and friends. Patrick Glynn will probably run the show with Lloyd Linnell acting as counsel. All photographs and disk drive safe. Even the LPs and old comic books. But most importantly, everyone is sleeping now, safe and sound. |
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Newspaper Headings: “Flood conditions stretched about 150 miles, from Colorado Springs north to Ft. Collins. Saturated soils left water with no place to go, and puddles turned to ponds throughout the densely populated Colorado Front Range. Rainwater swelled rivers and creeks, overtopped dams, flooded basements, and washed out roads. By September 16, authorities had confirmed six deaths, and more than 1,000 people remained missing.” |
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“President Barack Obama first declared a state of emergency for Boulder, El Paso, and Larimer counties, with an additional 12 counties added September 16: Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Fremont, Jefferson, Morgan, Logan, Pueblo, Washington and Weld counties.” |
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“The event ‘was likely a 100-year flood (or more accurately: a 1% probability per year flood),’ the report states, and that all-time record or near-record precipitation was recorded during the week of Sept. 9-15 across the Front Range.” |
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The downpour that inundated parts of Colorado this month was a once-in-a-millennium event for those areas, according to an analysis by the National Weather Service. |
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Fortunately, we were still able to enjoy what Colorado is typically known for: the sun & Broncos sunsets! Despite the chaos with the weather, it was good to be home again. |
Rob and Linds 
Hi Lindsey
Hey — I’ll take all the fame I can get!
Actually, Denver Channel 7 came by and did a long interview with me. It was orchestrated by the Bolder Boulder who offered to replace shirts lost/damaged in the flood.
I immediately sent in the photo of the four of us (in your post!) — turns out I was wearing a Bolder Boulder shirt.
But I think more people will see you blog post than the interview — I haven’t seen it.
(We’re hoping to get complimentary entry into the Colder Boulder on Dec 7 — a 5K on CU grounds.)
The basement is doing great. The unfinished workshop side is up and running — new shelves back up, and now taking things down, so we can reclaim living space upstairs.
We’ve been slowly cleaning up doors, trim, cabinets, that we’ll reinstall (and learn a little carpentry along the way..) once the sheet rock goes up.
In fact, in the grand scheme of things, its really sheet rock and carpet that we lost (oh yeah, the furnace..) but everything else will get reinstalled — lot of work, but work is good.
And we are taking the opportunity to have less stuff put back down, much to Kerry’s delight. I think your generation will accumulate less stuff than ours.
The story Kerry tells is about Daniel. We had been moving stuff out of our basement well in advance — we think at Patrick’s urging…but when Jack finally came running and said the north window was full,
and then BOOM…I said “Daniel, go get Randy” (our neighbor to the north — we had just finished helping them move stuff out of their flooding basement!
So daniel made it there and back safely, but really at that point, although I had been out recently, we didn’t know how the water was flowing.
Two of the deaths in boulder were high school kids getting out of their car (to help someone stuck) and got swept by I think what was only about 12″ of flowing water — but fast — with an incredible force behind it.
And then there’s the people we know who have lost entire homes. The stories go on and on. There’s a house on next ridge back from us — a mudslide has it off its foundation and I’m sure water was coursing though the first floor, and how could their land even now be worth anything.
Great post. You can quote me anytime.
Uncle Joe
Yes, your trip home definitely coincided with. Colorado’s “Perfect Storm.” Amazing how the most difficult, trickiest leg of your trip from about the farthest corner on earth was Denver International Airport to Fort Collins!!!!!