Flooding in Estes Park; webcams, phones down

SusanR

10 years ago

Flooding on Elkhorn Avenue, Estes Park, Colo. — Elkhorn Avenue, Estes Park

Update, Sept. 22: Two routes into Estes Park are now open to all traffic: (1) Trail Ridge Road, weather permitting, and (2) the Peak-to-Peak Scenic Byway from Black Hawk / Central City. Closed indefinitely are Hwy 72 through Coal Creek Canyon, Hwy 119 from Boulder to Nederland, Lefthand Canyon from Boulder to Ward, Hwy 7 from Lyons to Raymond, Hwy 36 from Lyons to Estes Park, and Hwy 34 from Loveland to Estes Park. See listings below for current road closures, conditions.

It’s been hard to get detailed information about the flooding in Estes Park, Colorado. Various sources confirm that Highways 36, 34, and 7 are all washed out in places and closed indefinitely. The only way in or out of town is via Trail Ridge Road, using the Beaver Meadows park entrance into Estes. The road from the Fall River entrance to Deer Ridge Junction is closed. That means Horseshoe Park, a prime foliage and elk viewing area transected by the Fall River, is not accessible.

At a press conference this morning, officials said the Olympus dam on Lake Estes is in good condition and performing as designed. All floodgates on the dam were opened yesterday, and the water level behind the dam is a bit lower today.

All the webcams in and around Estes are out of commission. Not surprising, given conditions in the area, but frustrating. Cell phones and land lines are also down. Radios are the only means of communication at this time.

Rescue and relief helicopters, which fly visually, have been unable to get to Estes because of the low cloud ceiling.

Elkhorn Avenue is Estes Park’s “Main Street.” These photos of conditions along Elkhorn this morning are from the Estes Park Facebook page. They were shot from outside Town Hall.