Tag Archives: flood

Severe Weather 101 – Severe Weather Awareness Week wrap up

Supercell thunderstorms like this can be beautiful - but they can also be deadly. Do you know what to do when severe weather strikes? (Stormscape Photography / FLICKR)
Supercell thunderstorms like this can be beautiful – but they can also be deadly. Do you know what to do when severe weather strikes? (Stormscape Photography / FLICKR)

Over the past week we have highlighted some of the severe weather hazards that we face in Colorado every spring and summer in our Severe Weather 101 series.  The dangers these present are significant and not to be taken lightly.

Tornadoes grab most of the headlines and certainly are a danger however others like lightning and flooding are more common and actually claim more lives.  We ask all of our readers to please, take the time to review these important articles – they could save yours and your family’s lives!

The National Weather Service has published a nice wrap up of Severe Weather Awareness Week that covers all the basics – see it below.  For more in depth information, please use the links at the bottom to view each article on our Severe Weather 101 series.  Be safe and be weatherwise!

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
600 AM MDT SAT APR 16 2022

SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS WEEK IN REVIEW

Severe Weather Awareness Week in review…

Severe Weather Awareness Week in Colorado concludes today. During the past week we have presented information and safety rules for tornadoes, lightning and wildfires, floods and flash floods, straight-line thunderstorm winds, hail, and our warning programs.

We will now review some of the most important safety rules in our effort to build a Weather-Ready Nation.

Be weather-wise by staying informed on expected weather in your area. The National Weather Service is typically aware of the potential for severe weather many hours or even days before any severe weather watches or warnings are issued, providing forecast products to heighten your awareness. A Weather Story product is posted each day on National Weather Service Internet pages and Facebook pages which includes a map and text on possible hazardous weather expected within the next seven days.

A Hazardous Weather Outlook is also issued daily with information on possible hazardous weather through the next seven days. A watch is issued when conditions for severe weather or flooding become possible. A warning is then issued when life threatening conditions are imminent or occurring.

Tornadoes

Tornadoes can even strike in mountain areas. In 2008 on August 23rd, this rope tornado struck Park County near Eleven Mile Reservoir. Image courtesy Jerry Bivens.
Tornadoes can even strike in mountain areas. In 2008 on August 23rd, this rope tornado struck Park County near Eleven Mile Reservoir. Image courtesy Jerry Bivens.

The best way to protect yourself from tornadoes is to have a plan of action. The safest place to be if a tornado approaches is in a basement or safe room within a well-built structure, or in an underground storm shelter. If none of these options are available, move to a hallway or a small interior room on the lowest floor, usually this is a closet or bathroom. Get under a heavy piece of furniture or in a bath tub and cover yourself with blankets. Remember, the greatest risk of injury from tornadoes is from flying debris.

Modular homes and mobile homes, even those tied down, offer little protection from tornadoes. If a tornado approaches, leave those locations and seek safety in a nearby sturdy building or storm shelter.

If you are driving in open country and see a tornado, if time permits, the best thing to do is simply drive away from the tornado path. Do not take shelter beneath a highway overpass. Wind speeds may actually be higher in these areas and often become collection points for debris.

If you are caught outside and cannot seek shelter inside a sturdy structure, crawl into a culvert or lie down in a narrow ditch or ravine and cover your head. But remember that the worst place to be when a tornado threatens is outside in the midst of flying debris.

Lightning

Lightning usually kills and injures more people in Colorado than any other thunderstorm hazard. Lightning also causes many wildfires.

The best defense to protect yourself against a lightning strike is to plan ahead and avoid being caught where you might be vulnerable. Check weather forecasts prior to venturing out, especially if you are heading into the mountains. Plan outdoor activities early in the day before storms develop.

If thunderstorms threaten, seek shelter in a building or in an enclosed metal-roof vehicle, making sure all windows and doors are closed. Never seek shelter under an isolated tree. During thunderstorms, stay off corded telephones, away from electrical devices, and away from plumbing. Also get out of shower stalls, bath tubs, swimming pools and lakes when lightning is nearby.

You should wait at least 30 minutes after the last sound of thunder before resuming outdoor activities. When thunder roars…go indoors.

Floods and Flash Floods

The Big Thompson Flood in 1976 claimed the lives of 144 Coloradoans and serves to remind us of the dangers of floods. (USGS)
The Big Thompson Flood in 1976 claimed the lives of 144 Coloradoans and serves to remind us of the dangers of floods. (USGS)

When flooding or flash flooding is possible, you should remain alert and be ready to quickly evacuate to higher ground or climb to safety. Flash floods often occur suddenly and without warning. You need to follow some basic flood safety rules:

  • Do not camp or park your vehicle along streams and washes, particularly during threatening conditions.
  • If you are near a river, be aware of water levels and be prepared to move to higher ground if river levels rise.
  • Do not enter areas that are already flooded.
  • If walking or fishing along a river, be aware that erosion from swift running water can cause river banks to collapse.
  • Never let your children play around high water, storm drains, viaducts or arroyos.

At least half of all flash flood fatalities are vehicle related. While driving your automobile, look out for flooding at highway dips, bridges and low areas. Two feet of moving water will carry away most vehicles. Never attempt to drive across a flooded road. And be especially cautious at night when it is difficult to see flood dangers.

Strong Straight-Line Winds

Straight-line winds from thunderstorms, including microbursts, can become quite strong, even reaching speeds in excess of 100 mph in extreme cases. When thunderstorms approach, high winds can suddenly develop, causing things on the ground to become swift moving airborne missiles with a potential force to injure or kill. As with any thunderstorm, seek shelter before the storm arrives.

Hail

This is one of the largest recorded hail stones which is more than 7 inches in diameter and fell in Nebraska in 2003. (NOAA)
This is one of the largest recorded hail stones which is more than 7 inches in diameter and fell in Nebraska in 2003. (NOAA)

Large hail can pose a danger to animals and people. Hail also produces considerable damage to crops and personal property each year in Colorado. Again, get indoors before thunderstorms arrive. A fall of small hail can suddenly change to a fall of very large ice missiles which can injure or kill. Make efforts to protect personal property before storms threaten.

Warning Notification

When thunderstorms threaten, tune to NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radio, The Weather Channel, or your local radio or television stations. Also check the Internet web site from the National Weather Service office serving your area. And if you have a relatively new cell phone you should receive Tornado and Flash Flood Warnings on your phone if you are in the area of the warning.

During threatening weather days, plan the actions you will need to take so that you will be prepared if dangerous weather conditions actually develop.

NOAA’s National Weather Service wishes you a safe severe weather season.

Severe Weather Awareness Week in Colorado concludes today. During the past week we have presented information and safety rules for tornadoes, lightning and wildfires, floods and flash floods, straight-line thunderstorm winds, hail, and our warning programs.

 

Severe Weather 101 – Floods and Flash Floods

The Big Thompson Flood in 1976 claimed the lives of 144 Coloradoans and serves to remind us of the dangers of floods.
The Big Thompson Flood in 1976 claimed the lives of 144 Coloradoans and serves to remind us of the dangers of floods.

For much of Colorado, floods and flash floods present a grave danger to life and property. These usually are the result of one of two things – spring snow melt occurring rapidly or a severe thunderstorm. Colorado is very susceptible to flash flooding and these occur somewhere every year in the state.

The waters from flash floods can move with extraordinary speed and strike with little or not warning.  Their force can be extremely destructive and when coupled with trees, dirt, rocks and other debris they carry downstream, they are deadly.

Flooding is the number one weather killer in the United States.

Continue reading Severe Weather 101 – Floods and Flash Floods

Severe Weather Awareness Week in Colorado gets started

In 1981 a tornado ripped through Thornton and caused major damage. Last year, funnel clouds were spotted across much of the area. Image courtesy City of Thornton archives.

As is customary as we get further into spring, this coming week has been proclaimed Severe Weather Awareness Week.  This is an opportunity for the public to get reacquainted with the dangers severe weather presents in Colorado.

Tornadoes, lightning, hail, severe wind and flooding are very real hazards that Coloradans face every year during severe weather season.  It is important that you know what to do to protect you and your family.

Just 12 years ago in what was Denver’s weather story of the year, we suffered through a period of unusually severe weather including a tornado that ripped through the Southlands Mall.

Thirteen years ago on May 22nd an EF3 tornado raced north through Weld and Larimer counties resulting in one fatality near Windsor and causing several injuries and destroyed or heavily damaged hundreds of homes.

And of course in 1981 Thornton was the site of the worst tornado to ever strike the Denver metro area.

Tornadoes may get all the press but other severe weather can be damaging and deadly.

Just eight years ago, late summer flooding caused millions of dollars of damage across northeastern Colorado.  It was 45 years ago that thunderstorms brought a raging torrent of water down the Big Thompson and caused one of Colorado’s worst natural disasters.  Eleven years ago hail struck the Thornton area causing damage to homes and vehicles.

In conjunction with the National Weather Service’s statements on Severe Weather Awareness Week, ThorntonWeather.com will be publishing our Severe Weather 101 series.  Each day this week a weather hazard will be discussed in depth and we will outline protective measures you can take to keep yourself and your family safe.  Please be sure to check back every day to read these important message.

Continue reading Severe Weather Awareness Week in Colorado gets started

A race against Mother Nature as officials send water cascading out of California’s Lake Oroville

OROVILLE, Calif. — With more storms expected to slam Northern California later this week, officials worked frantically Monday to drain water from brimming Lake Oroville in hopes of heading off a potentially catastrophic flood. The operators at America’s tallest dam found themselves in a precarious position Monday, with both of the spillways used to release water… Continue reading A race against Mother Nature as officials send water cascading out of California’s Lake Oroville

Mississippi River is About to Have a Record Flood

The Mississippi River is flooding in a big way right now, at the wrong time of year, and is forecasted to match or break 22-year-old crest records over the next few days. Meteorologists are calling it “insane.” Over the next three to four days, the Mississippi is predicted to reach a crest height of 49.7 feet… Continue reading Mississippi River is About to Have a Record Flood

Aussie teens learn what type of flotation device not to use in a flooding river

Two teens in Australia discovered that certain flotation devices aren't appropriate in a flooding river. (Trevor Pinder)
Two teens in Australia discovered that certain flotation devices aren't appropriate in a flooding river. (Trevor Pinder)

Sometimes you just can’t save people from themselves.  With Australia battling flooding across four of its states, emergency officials have had their hands full providing relief and rescuing those affected by the disaster.  The Natural Disasters Examiner reports about how the decision by a young couple to test the floodwaters with inflatable sex dolls earlier this week was not met with amusement by authorities. 

The 19-year-old couple chose to enter the waters of the Yarra River near Melbourne with inflatable sex dolls to aid them in their swim.  The rushing waters apparently were too much for the pair – and the dolls – and they soon found themselves in danger.

The young lady held onto a tree while her companion and his doll stood watch and began yelling for help.  A passerby called police and rescue units retrieved the couple from the river.

According to The Telegraph, officials told the couple that sex dolls were “not a recognized flotation device.”  Authorities were not pleased to have had to divert resources for a rescue that should not have been necessary. 

Flooding in Australia has become a disaster of gargantuan proportions as hundreds of thousands of acres across four states have been flooded.  More than 30 people have been killed and tens of thousands of people are now homeless. 

View more images of the water rescue here.

Australian floods continue unabated flooding hundreds of thousands of square miles

This screen capture shows a car being carried away by a flash flood in Toowoomba, Australia. Click the image to watch the amazing video on Examiner.com.
This screen capture shows a car being carried away by a flash flood in Toowoomba, Australia. Click the image to watch the amazing video on Examiner.com.

The death toll from the relentless flooding in Queensland, Australia continues to climb as four people were killed in a flash flood.  The rising waters have inundated an area covering hundreds of thousands of square miles and now threaten the city of Brisbane. 

The most recent fatalities, two adults and two children, occurred near the city of Toowoomba when flash floods swept their vehicle from the road.  A wall of water as high as 26 feet (eight meters) raged through the area in the wake of a rainstorm. 

Cars, furniture and people were tossed around by the rushing waters and search and rescue operations continue as fears of additional deaths weigh heavily.  The waters hit with enough intensity to move houses from their foundations and landslides covered highways. 

Premier Anna Bligh told a press conference, “Mother Nature has unleashed something shocking on Toowoomba.”

Continue reading Australian floods continue unabated flooding hundreds of thousands of square miles

NASA satellites capture images of deadly flooding in Pakistan

Flooding in Pakistan is easily seen in this satellite image released by NASA.  See larger images below and click here to view images from on the ground in Pakistan. (NASA)
Flooding in Pakistan is easily seen in this satellite image released by NASA. See larger images below. (NASA)

While Colorado has witnessed some pretty good rain showers in recent days due to the monsoon season, it is nothing compared to what Pakistan is experiencing.  Seemingly endless monsoonal rains have flooded hundreds of thousands of acres in Pakistan that were easily spotted by NASA satellites.

The floods, said to be the worst in the nation since 1929, have claimed more than 1,500 lives and affected 3.2 million people. Entire villages have been submerged by the water that continues to rise across large swaths of the nation.

By comparison, Colorado’s worst natural disaster was the Big Thompson Flood which killed 143 people in 1976.  This occurred during our own monsoon season but pales in comparison to what is happening in Pakistan. 

The images taken by NASA on July 31st show the Indus River in northwestern Pakistan clearly overflowing. The difference between the image taken this year versus one taken on August 1, 2009 provide a stark contrast that demonstrates how much worse this season is.

Flooding in Pakistan – Image captured July 31, 2010 (NASA)
Satellite image of flooding in Pakistan along the Indus River. (NASA)

Pakistan – Image captured August 1, 2009 (NASA)
Satellite image of flooding in Pakistan along the Indus River. (NASA)

More on the Pakistan flooding: Floods ravage Pakistan killing 1,500 and affecting millions

Slideshow: Death and devastation as monsoon rains flood Pakistan

34 years ago today – the Big Thompson Flood remembered

The Big Thompson Flood in 1976 claimed the lives of 143 Coloradoans in what is Colorado's deadliest natural disaster.

July 31, 1976 started like most other summer days in Colorado. It was 1976 and the nation was celebrating its bicentennial and Colorado was celebrating its centennial. What should have been a quiet summer day quickly turned disastrous as the Big Thompson Flood killed more than 100 people in Colorado’s deadliest natural disaster.

In terms of weather, the day started out much like one would expect but by late afternoon storm clouds loomed over the mountains. Mountain thunderstorms are an almost daily occurrence in Colorado but the storm that struck in the early evening that day was unlike any other.

With light winds aloft, the storm stalled over the upper portion of the Big Thompson basin where it sat dumping tremendous amounts of rain – nearly 8 inches in one hour and 12 inches over four hours. The rain came so fast that the water didn’t have time to be absorbed into the ground.

I’m stuck, I’m right in the middle of it, I can’t get out…about a half mile east of Drake on the highway. Get the cars out of the low area down below…
~ Radio transmission by Sergeant Willis Hugh Purdy, Colorado State Patrol. Purdy was never heard from again.

In the mid-sections of the canyon and lower, there was little indication of what was to come. The flash flood that resulted from the rain further up rushed down the canyon creating a wall of water that was 20 feet high in places. The flood scoured the canyon of everything – cars, homes, buildings and people.

The following day the Rocky Mountain News ran with the headline “Scores dead, hundreds hurt in Big Thompson flash flood.” A subheading said, “U.S. 34 west of Loveland is no more.”

When the flood was over, 143 people had lost their lives, more than in any other natural disaster in state history. 418 homes, 52 businesses and 400 cars were destroyed at a cost of over $40 million.

More coverage:

This story was originally published on the Denver Weather Examiner.  Be sure to visit Examiner.com for all the latest Denver and Colorado weather news and information.