My comment:  This is unbelievable, surreal.  Praying for the people of Colorado.

Thousands of Coloradans have been displaced, five are dead and more than 170 are unaccounted for in the worst flooding to hit the state in known memory.

With the rain never seeming to end and the waters continuing to rise, more than 4,000 people near Boulder, Colorado, have been evacuated as nearby Milliken has been surrounded by water and turned into an island, according to reports.

The reality of what is becoming a long-term disaster is setting in, flooding has affected parts of a 4,500-square-mile area almost the size of Connecticut.

An aerial view of vehicles submerged in flood waters along the South Platte River near Greenley, Colorado

Underwater: The small farming town of Milliken, CO, has been surrounded by waters that first turned it into an island, but are now inundating homes

Runaway homes: Trailer homes are floating off their foundations as rushing waters sweep them away

Not just homes: Farms and farm equipment are also being destroyed by the treacherous waters

Unprecedented: The 12 inches of rain recorded since Sept 1 has set an all-time record for the month, and even more is on the way

In the most recent developments, people are stranded in Milliken after the main road out of town was washed away by raging floodwaters, according to CBS Denver. As the devastating rapids rise, they wash away more of the road, and flood ever closer to even more homes.

‘The fire department said Milliken is an island but I found a way out,’ Jorge Garza told the station.

A CBS Denver helicopter flying over the town spotted a family of three and their dog being rescued from menacing waters via a motorized raft. ‘[Milliken] has turned into a lake with campers, fields and cars submerged,’ the station further reported.

172 people are unaccounted for, Boulder County officials told KDVR.

As rescuers broke through to flood-ravaged Colorado towns, they issued a stern warning Saturday to anyone thinking of staying behind: Leave now or be prepared to endure weeks without electricity, running water and basic supplies.

Authorities made clear that residents who chose not to leave might not get another chance for a while.

‘We’re not trying to force anyone from their home. We’re not trying to be forceful, but we’re trying to be very factual and definitive about the consequences of their decision, and we hope that they will come down,’ Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said.

Cut off: A farm house has been turned into an island as flood water rises near Greenley, Colorado

By land: The Army National Guard has brought in heavy equipment meant to assist in the rescue of trapped residents

Or by sea: Officials are also using motorboats to help save trapped people

Shocked: Residents are shell-shocked, many have lost everything, as a result of the historic floods

Waterlogged: Cattle brave the fierce waters on higher ground as everything around them is swept away

Special education teacher Brian Shultz, 38, was torn about leaving his Jamestown home.

‘I was thinking about staying. I could have lasted at least a year. I have a lot of training in wilderness survival,’ he said, adding that he probably had enough beer to last the whole time.

Another one to two inches of rain is expected to fall between Saturday night and Sunday, which will only add to the problems.

National Guard choppers have been evacuating the Jamestown, of about 295 people – plus pets – after the mountain hamlet became isolated by flooding.

Mike Smith, incident commander at Boulder Municipal Airport, said helicopters would continue flying in and out late into the night.

The outlook for anyone who’d rather stay is weeks without power, cell phone service, water or sewer.
For those awaiting an airlift, Guardsmen dropped food, water and other supplies in Jamestown and other small towns in the winding, narrow canyons that dot the Rocky Mountain foothills.

Swamped: A railway track in Longmont is lost under floodwater

Ruined: Trailer homes have been washed away in the water

The surge: Flash-flooding continues in the Boulder-area of Colorado after three days of record-breaking rainfall

Overflowing: The heavy rains have impacted a large stretch of Colorado from Fort Collins near the northern border with Wyoming, all the way to Boulder, Denver and Colorado Springs more than 100 miles south

Geysers of sewage: A Sewer in Manitou Springs is overwhelmed by rainfall yesterday, gurgling the overflow of water

Thousands of evacuees sought shelter in cities that were nearly surrounded by raging rivers spilling over their banks.

The dayslong rush of water from higher ground has killed four people and turned towns on Colorado’s expansive eastern plains into muddy swamps.

Crews used inflatable boats to rescue families and pets from stranded farmhouses. Some evacuees on horseback had to be escorted to safe ground.

Boulder County officials said Friday night that the number of people unaccounted for had risen to 172, according to local television and newspaper reports.

‘I expect that we’re going to continue to receive reports of confirmed missing and confirmed fatalities throughout the next several days,’ Larimer County sheriff’s spokesman John Schulz said.

Record-breaking: Over 12 inches of rain has fallen since September 1, which shatters the previous record set in the 1940s of 5.5 inches

View from above: Satellite imaging shows the storm system that swept over the eastern Colorado area on September 11, starting flash-floods that have killed three so far

Flee: The floods have displaced thousands of human residents, but also the wildlife in Colorado. Above, a deer jumps over a sidewalk in a flood-damaged area of Boulder

The officials said earlier that the unaccounted for figure doesn’t necessarily represent missing people.

Near Greeley, some 35 miles east of the foothills, broad swaths of farmland had become lakes, and hundreds of roads were closed or damaged by floodwaters. A 70-mile stretch of Interstate 25 was closed from Denver to the Wyoming line.

Rocky Mountain National Park closed Friday, its visitors forced to leave via the 60-mile Trail Ridge Road to the west side of the Rockies.

It will be weeks, if not months, before a semblance of normalcy returns to Lyons, a gateway community to the park. The town, surrounded by sandstone cliffs whose color was reflected in the raging St. Vrain River, consisted of six islands Friday as residents barbecued their food before it spoiled. Several people set up a tent camp on a hill.

Some 2,500 residents were being evacuated from Lyons. Two bridges that led into the area were washed away.

Watch the video and view the rest

Related articles

• Town Of Milliken Nearly An Island Due To Flooding (denver.cbslocal.com)
• Four dead in Colorado floods amid rescues, scenes of devastation – Reuters (reuters.com)
• Colorado flood death toll rises (theguardian.com)
• At least 172 people missing in 1 county (cnn.com)
• Four dead in Colorado floods amid rescues, scenes of devastation (news.yahoo.com)

Categories: extreme weather, news

Tags: Army National Guard, Boulder County Colorado, colorado, South Platte River