| CNN | - |
Boulder,
Colorado (CNN) -- Clear skies allowed for more evacuations and rescues
in flood-devastated Colorado on Friday, but the forecast through Sunday
called for more heavy rain.
Heavy rainfall heading once more for flooded Colorado
updated 12:18 AM EDT, Sat September 14, 2013
Homes are surrounded by floodwater
in Lyons, Colorado, on Friday, September 13, 2013. Flooding in northern
Colorado has washed away roads and bridges and flooded homes.
Authorities warned more rain was on the way, threatening more flooding.
Three deaths have been reported.
HIDE CAPTION
Flash floods hit Colorado
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- 172 people "unaccounted for" in Boulder County alone; four deaths confirmed in Colorado
- Woman rescued with baby by National Guard: "Felt like God came down and saved us"
- Some residents may be stranded well after storms end because of washed-out roads
- "Very heavy rainfall" likely for flooded areas, Colorado officials say
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Boulder, Colorado (CNN) -- Clear skies allowed for
more evacuations and rescues in flood-devastated Colorado on Friday, but
the forecast through Sunday called for more heavy rain.
Even after the last of
the storms, authorities can't say how long it will take to reach
residents who will remain isolated by devastated roads.
The confirmed death toll
reached four when Boulder County officials recovered the body of a woman
who had been swept away after getting out of her vehicle Thursday,
Sheriff Joe Pelle said. Authorities already had recovered the body of a
man who left the same car and tried to save the woman.
One other death had been reported in Boulder County and one occurred in El Paso County.
At least 172 people in
Boulder County have been reported missing or "unaccounted for" by
relatives, Sheriff's Cmdr. Heidi Prentup said.
President Barack Obama
declared an emergency for Boulder, Larimer and El Paso counties, FEMA
announced Friday. The declaration allowed FEMA to bring in four rescue
teams, the largest ever deployment in Colorado, officials said.
More heavy rain is
forecast through Sunday for the region, on top of the 15 inches some
parts of the state have already received.
"This isn't over," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said.
On Friday, National Guard
troops using "high-profile" trucks to wade through water were
evacuating the entire Boulder County town of Lyons, which had been cut
off since the flooding began Wednesday night.
"It just really felt
like God came down and saved us. It felt great," Melinda Villa said of
the National Guard's arrival at the Lyons apartment where she was
stranded with her 1-month-old infant. She said, "I just felt like I was
trapped. No phone, no water, barely any formula for my baby, barely any
food for us."
Jonathan Linenberger
described a Noah's Ark-style evacuation as he, his fiancee and four dogs
and three cats greeted the National Guard truck.
"We had to go (through)
knee-deep water, at least. We had to wade our animals across into the
truck to get them there," said Linenberger. "That was the first thing
you can grab, your loved ones -- and that's what we have."
The National Guard also was evacuating the entire population -- 285 people -- from the town of Jamestown by helicopter, CNN affiliate KCNC-TV reported.
Four helicopters were
being used for rescues in Boulder County Friday, Pelle said. The sheriff
said helicopters also may have to be used indefinitely to deliver food
and water to residents along damaged rural roads.
"Please know we're
working hard," Pelle told residents who might see his televised news
conference. "We're concerned about you. But you're going to have to be
patient. Please know this is an unprecented event."
The University of Colorado canceled Saturday's scheduled football game against Fresno State.
In Larimer County to the
north, Sheriff Justin Smith surveyed the heavily damaged Big Thompson
Canyon by air Friday. Some people remain stranded in homes there, he
said, adding, "How we're going to get them out -- it's going to take a
damn long time."
However, he said the
break in the rain Friday allowed school buses to begin evacuating
students who had been stranded at a school.
Smith described widespread damage to roads. He estimated 17 miles of Highway 34, a major artery, will need to be rebuilt.
Lyons rescue
The National Guard
effort to get residents out of Lyons began shortly after daybreak. About
100 troops in 21 heavy vehicles able to ford high waters streamed into
the city to begin moving residents out, Gov. John Hickenlooper said.
Residents had been
entirely cut off, without water or sewer service, in many cases without
electricity, facing what Fire Chief J.J. Hoffman said in a Facebook
posting was a "very large disaster."
It was unclear when the evacuation would be complete.
"I encourage all of you
-- stay strong!" Hoffman wrote on the fire department's Facebook page.
"We will make it through this, we are here for you and doing the
absolute best we can with the resources we have to get to each and every
one of you!"
As Lyons evacuees
arrived at a shelter set up in a church in nearby Longmont, they told
stories of houses ripped off their foundations as the St. Vrain Creek
turned into a violent river, CNN affiliate KMGH reported.
KMGH reporter Theresa Marchetta said evacuees also described homes dangling off cliffs.
Some people in Lyons
still were awaiting rescue, evacuees said, and some residents had chosen
to stay. Marchetta said evacuees told her there had been a town meeting
and residents were checking on each other to ensure no one was missing.
Danger elsewhere
State transportation
officials issued an emergency alert to residents in some of the
hardest-hit counties, warning them to stay off roads because many are
unstable and could give way without notice. They also closed Interstate
25 from the Wyoming line south to Denver. Part of Interstate 70 also was
shut down.
In Fort Collins, some
residents had been urged to leave their homes. And in Denver, police
responded when a man was swept into a drainage pipe with his dog. Both
were saved after traveling two blocks in the water, police said on
Twitter.
Rescuer: We hoped for best in flood
Man trapped in flooding, overturned car
Mom and daughter stuck in hail, flood
Deadly flooding in Colorado
The rains sent virtually
every waterway in Boulder County coursing out of its banks, and massive
water flows washed away roads and bridges, flooded homes and stressed
numerous other bridges.
In the early hours
Friday, flood sirens sounded in Boulder County as emergency officials
feared that debris-caked canyons might give way and send another wall of
water crashing through the city of Boulder and neighboring communities.
"All residents are
warned to go to higher ground immediately due to the potential for flash
flooding along the creek," Boulder's Office of Emergency Management
said.
Emergency management
warned that "there are mudslides at the mouth of Boulder Canyon 400 feet
long and four feet deep as the sides of the canyon give way due to the
saturation from the days-long rain."
Authorities continued to warn of the danger of mudslides Friday night.
Hickenlooper warned an extensive recovery is ahead.
"This is not going to get fixed in a week," he said. "We have lost a great deal of infrastructure."
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