La Plata County sheriff closes all county roads amid flooding
For the second time in nearly a week, heavy rains caused extensive flooding, washed out roads and prompted evacuation orders Sunday in Archuleta and La Plata counties.
The La Plata County sheriff temporarily closed all county roads as of 2 p.m. because of dangerous flooding conditions. Durango School District and Fort Lewis College canceled all classes for Monday. And several residents were reportedly trapped or seeking to self-evacuate throughout low-lying areas, including Junction Creek Mobile Home Park northwest of Durango.
“We do expect all county roads to remain closed all night, so residents should shelter in place and stay home tonight,” said Emily Spencer, spokeswoman for La Plata County.
The county didn’t have the resources to physically close every road, but it was asking residents to adhere to the closures and sign up for county alerts for updates.
Spencer said flooding had impacted wide swaths of the county, including Hesperus, Durango, Hermosa, Vallecito and Ignacio.
“It’s going to continue all night long,” she said.
Several residents posted videos of what appeared to be rivers of mud and debris coming down mountainsides and washing over county roads, including La Plata County roads 203 and 250 in the Animas Valley north of Durango.
Several pedestrian bridges were in danger of being washed away throughout La Plata County.
Evacuations were occurring at the Meadowbrook Mobile Home Park in Ignacio, the Pine Winds Mobile Home Park in Hesperus and the Junction Creek Mobile Home Park a few miles northwest of Durango.
Evacuation shelters were being set up at the La Plata County Fairgrounds in Durango, Ignacio High School in Ignacio, and Vallecito Baptist Church at 17576 County Road 501.
Colorado Department of Transportation was reporting multiple road closures across Southwest Colorado, including:
As of about 4 p.m., La Plata Electric Association was reporting about 245 customers without power in the Junction Creek area north of Durango and 642 customers without power in the Helen’s Corner and Lemon Reservoir area northeast of Durango.
Weather outlook
A flood warning was in effect until 4:15 p.m. Monday for much of Southwest Colorado. The warning extended to 7 p.m. Monday for Pagosa Springs.
National Weather Service Meteorologist Briana Bealo said areas above 11,000 in elevation in Southwest Colorado received 8 to 12 inches of rain Friday through Sunday afternoon.
“We originally thought we were going to be getting snow down to 9,000 or 10,000 feet, and a lot of that higher-elevation moisture was going to be snow and not runoff,” Bealo said. “Now, we’re seeing liquid precipitation up that high, and all of that’s becoming runoff and flowing into the rivers.”
Durango had received 1.5 inches of rain from Friday through Sunday afternoon, with another inch expected overnight.
La Plata County Sheriff Sean Smith said deputies were responding to 23 separate flooding incidents across the county.
Floodwaters exceeded 12 inches in depth in many areas of the county.
“We have all kinds of different places that are dangerous for the traveling public,” Smith said. “We’re responding to emergencies of people trapped in their cars, so we’ve just asked the public please stay home.”
Smith said the Sheriff’s Office is deploying most of its available resources to assist those affected by the flooding.
The Durango Police Department reported Sunday that flooding had closed roads at the intersection of Junction Street and Clovis Drive, as well as Junction Street near Dalla Mountain Park at the city-county line. The department also said there was no access into Durango from county roads 204 and 205.
Archuleta County preparing for disaster
In Archuleta County, an evacuation order was put in place Sunday for homes along the river banks of the San Juan, Rio Blanco, Navajo and Piedra Rivers.
In a news release Saturday night, the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office said it was preparing for Pagosa Springs to receive up to 3 inches of rain by Monday morning, while surrounding mountains could see as much as 18 inches of snow.
Wolf Creek Ski Area, which opened for the season Saturday, closed Sunday because of flood risks along the San Juan River basin. The resort reported 6.5 inches of snow over the previous seven days in a marketing email.
According to Bealo, Pagosa Springs has received up to 1.7 inches of rain since Friday afternoon. On Sunday morning, the Colorado Department of Transportation closed Colorado Highway 151 between mileposts 27 and 30 because of rising floodwaters, urging residents in the area to evacuate immediately, with no estimated reopening time.
The Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office restricted incoming traffic to Pagosa Springs beginning at 2 p.m. CDOT spokeswoman Adair Christensen said U.S. Highway 160 over Wolf Creek Pass and Colorado Highway 17 also closed at that time.
Bealo said the unusually warm temperatures are likely contributing to the San Juan River’s potential to surpass its previous flood crest, set during the 1911 flood.
The Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office expected the San Juan River to reach an all-time high flood crest about 6 p.m. Sunday.
County spokeswoman Vicki Schaffer said the San Juan River at Pagosa Springs could reach a crest of 22 feet following weekend storms. The previous record was 17.8 feet.
“The situation we’re facing now is with the ground saturation level,” Archuleta County Incident Commander Charles Balke said during a media briefing Sunday.
Balke said the soil in runoff-prone areas can no longer absorb water.
Archuleta County Sheriff Mike LeRoux said about 1,000 homes are in affected areas, and deputies have been working to evacuate as many residents as possible.
“We’ve been knocking on doors since Oct. 21,” Le Roux said about the county’s evacuation efforts.
As of Sunday, only five people had sought shelter at the Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association, located at 230 Port Ave.
“We’ve done what we can to get people to evacuate,” he said.
Balke said during the briefing that homes along the rivers could experience significant water level rises, leading to flooding and potential damage inside homes.
Traffic control points were established at several locations along Highway 160 in Archuleta County, including:
Additional traffic control points will occur at:
The storm is hitting Archuleta County just as officials were beginning to make progress on recovery efforts following last week’s flooding. As of Saturday, emergency response teams had responded to all people who needed to be rescued.
“Last night, we did remove a lady from her home who had tried to stay there because she had horses and chickens. But, she was evacuated yesterday by the National Guard,” Shaffer said.
The San Juan Back Country Horsemen, a volunteer group that maintains wilderness trails and transports supplies using horses and mules, helped rescue the resident’s livestock, Shaffer said.
Bealo said lower elevations of Archuleta County could receive another inch of rain by Monday afternoon, while higher foothill areas could see up to 2 inches.
This is a developing story. It was made available for free to all readers. Check back with www.durangoherald.com for updates.
