Southern Colorado rivers swelled past major flood thresholds on Sunday night, prompting mandatory evacuations, road closures, and shelter operations across multiple counties weeks after a previous round of damaging high water, The Denver Post reported.
San Juan River Crests in Pagosa Springs
Water overflowed riverbanks and threatened local infrastructure as emergency measures gripped southern Colorado on Monday. Archuleta County bore the immediate brunt of the rising San Juan River in Pagosa Springs. Preliminary data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s river gauges indicated the river peaked at 16.81 feet late Sunday night. While forecasters previously expected a crest near 22 feet that would have broken a more than 100-year-old flood record, Sunday night’s measured height still marks the second-highest flood on record for the location. That crest sits nearly 2 feet higher than the river’s level on Oct. 23 and solidly qualifies as major flooding.
Mandatory evacuation orders stayed in place Monday for downtown Pagosa Springs and all low-lying zones along the San Juan, Rio Blanco, Navajo, and Piedra rivers. Archuleta County officials also ordered evacuations for residents along Stollsteimer Creek adjacent to U.S. 160 while directing the remainder of the county to shelter in place. An emergency evacuation shelter opened at the Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association Clubhouse at 230 Port Avenue. Archuleta County sheriff’s officials warned Sunday that extensive damage is expected, compounding the strain from a separate flood less than two weeks prior that damaged more than 500 homes and 150 miles of road.
Evacuations and River Gauges Across the Region
Emergency operations stretched far beyond Archuleta County as multiple river basins reached critical levels. In Rio Grande and Mineral counties, mandatory evacuation orders affected residents along the South Fork of the Rio Grande River, including parts of Del Norte, Monte Vista, and South Fork. The South Fork reached major flood stage at 8.88 feet late Sunday night near South Fork and held steady overnight, with NOAA gauges indicating the water would continue rising near Del Norte and Monte Vista.
Evacuation centers opened at the Ski Hi Complex in Monte Vista, the South Fork Community Building, and the Rio Grande Hospital Wellness Center in Del Norte. Meanwhile, in La Plata County, mandatory evacuations covered multiple Durango neighborhoods along Junction Creek, the Pine River Ranches subdivision in Bayfield, Alamo Drive, and several mobile home parks including Junction Creek, Durango Regency, and Meadowbrook in Ignacio. La Plata County officials closed all county roads due to dangerous flood conditions and debris flows.
Conejos County officials ordered mandatory evacuations Sunday morning from Platoro to Mogote in the Conejos River Canyon and for the town of Manassa, instructing residents to prepare to stay away from home for several days. Both the South Conejos and North Conejos school districts canceled Monday classes.
Further west in Montezuma County, Mancos residents received orders to evacuate a downtown block affected by Mancos River runoff, with an NOAA gauge tracking the river at 8.77 feet early Monday before it began to recede. Concurrently, parts of Colorado 145 along the Dolores River remained on pre-evacuation notice as waters peaked.
