Fort Collins Flood 1997: Comprehensive View of an Extreme Event
Publication: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 125, Issue 5
Abstract
The July 1997 flood in Fort Collins was caused by the heaviest rains ever documented over an urbanized area in Colorado, and offers a data base and multifaceted set of lessons about flood planning, mitigation, response, and recovery for engineers, flood managers, and urban officials. The storm dropped 10 to 14 inches in 31 hours and some peak discharges greatly exceeded projected 100-year and 500-year flows. Five people died, 54 were injured, about 200 homes were lost, and 1,500 homes and businesses were damaged. Damages at Colorado State University were about $100,000,000, including catastrophic losses to the library. The paper summarizes the flood experience and provides lessons in five categories: urban drainage and flood control, risk management, mitigation, flood response, and public involvement.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 125 • Issue 5 • September 1999
Pages: 255 - 262
History
Received: Jul 23, 1998
Published online: Sep 1, 1999
Published in print: Sep 1999
Authors
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