“We have snow packs like we haven’t seen in years,” said Chaffee County Office of Emergency Management Director Phil Graham. “When the snow begins to melt, we don’t know what is going to happen. We were all up Cottonwood Creek yesterday, looking at the debris fields from the slides that have happened up there. We don’t know how much debris is up there [on the peaks] county-wide. Creating the free sandbag program is a proactive response to the potential for flood situations.”
Cottonwood Pass has seen multiple slides this year, and the Colorado Department of Transportation has announced that road crews that began construction last year on the east side of the pass are not expected to return to work until Aug. 12 due to the high snowpack levels and danger from debris slides as the snow melts. Photo courtesy of Fox News.
County departments making their way up to Cottonwood Pass on Thursday included the OEM, County Road and Bridge Superintendent Mark Stacy, Randy Mosby at the Chaffee County Fairgrounds, Buena Vista Public Works Director Shawn Williams, and Buena Vista Fire Chief Dixon Villers, and their teams.
“We’re being cautious,” adds Commissioner Keith Baker, who stressed that the county is intent on being proactive. “Higher than average (for recent years) snowpack, wet spring (ground may be saturated and unable to absorb as much runoff), cool temps followed by warmth and perhaps rain could create a sudden melt and a surge of runoff. It’s preparing for the worst, hope for the best.”
Graham said his office has already received calls from county residents who have experienced flooding before, so being proactive and making assistance available now, makes sense.
“Sooner or later the snow will begin to melt. We don’t know what is going to happen – it depends upon how fast the temperatures rise. But I can tell you, looking at the debris fields from the slides up Cottonwood [Creek] we need to be prepared,” said Graham. “You combine the snowpack, and the diseased trees in the forests, we have no idea what the snowfields are going to grab and bring down the mountains when they begin to melt.”
The two sandbag locations are spread from the south to the north ends of the county. One free public sandbag filling station has been set up at the Chaffee County Fairground, 10165 CR 120. A second sandbag filling station is located at 755 Gregg Drive in Buena Vista. Both stations will be open 24-hours a day.
At the fairgrounds, residents should use the west entrance (the one with yellow gates). The sand, buckets with empty sandbags, and shovels will be just inside that gate.
In Buena Vista, the filling station is just inside the public works yard, and all supplies needed are onsite. Residents using this location are asked to be careful entering and leaving the yard as they will be driving around heavy machinery parked inside the yard.
The OEM is also planning to collaborate with the Department of Corrections in Buena Vista to potentially use their crews for sandbagging if a crisis situation develops. Graham stressed that the county departments are working together to be prepared.
Graham added that Chaffee Fire is warning people to be proactive in another way – to look at their property along the creeks, rivers and flow areas and pull back any items that might be picked up and carried off, potentially adding to the debris in the moving water.
“Basically they want people to know to not become part of the problem by allowing materials to go downhill,” said Graham.
Graham said that residents with questions can contact the Office of Emergency Management at 719-539-2596.
The message for every resident of Chaffee County, says Graham, is “We know we’re going to have a surge – it’s how much, how fast, what does it bring down with it?”
Editor’s note: Video images of debris brought down by snow slides, taken by Graham on Cottonwood Pass on Thursday, May 30.
Howdy! Someone in my Facebook group shared this website with us so I came to look it over. I’m definitely enjoying the information. I’m book-marking and will be tweeting this to my followers! Terrific blog and amazing style and design.
Hello,
We surely appreciate your comment — we try very hard to assure that we cover the news accurately, in a timely way and without bias. One clarification; Ark Valley Voice is a free digital news media platform, not a blog. The only time opinions enter into it is as letters to the editor, guest opinions, and our rare ‘Our Voice’ editorials. We appreciate your sharing news of AVV to your followers as our advertisers and donors pay attention to the stats of our readers and those who sign as members to receive our once-a-week compilation of the stories that ran during that week.
Regards,
Jan Wondra
Managing Editor