Happy Mother's Day!

What a weekend! Mother Nature took the state of Colorado on a wild ride. We had areal and flash flood warnings, tornados, hail and even a winter storm.... all in 24 hours. With all that weather, Larimer County experienced heavy rain that caused some damage to rural roads prompting the Department of Emergency Management to activate the EOC. All is now quiet and we're left feeling fortunate. It could have been so much worse.

The Larimer County EOC and Larimer VOAD are officially standing down. No new issues were reported overnight. The American Red Cross shelter team is on standby and is monitoring conditions. This will be the final update from the Larimer VOAD regarding this storm. We hope the remainder of spring runoff season is gentle but are prepared to react if we are needed. 

WEATHER UPDATE: 
Larimer County is still under a Winter Storm Warning but it is expected to expire this morning. Light snow and winds are observed across the county. Temperatures are expected to continue dropping throughout the day. All totals of precipitation and snowfall were somewhat lower than forecast but this will help with the flood outlook for the coming week.
 
Some snow totals for this storm up through 7 a.m.
DayWeather Office East Fort Collins 1.0 inches
Buckhorn Mtn 1E 8.6 inches
Estes Park 1SSE 2.9 inches
Hourglass Lake 11.0 inches
Wellington 1SE 1.2 inches

RIVERS:
On the Poudre there will be a peak flow right around 0700 Monday. It will be close to the level this morning of a stage of 5.88 feet or roughly 2890 CFS. The level will fall Tuesday and Wednesday and then come up again at the end of the week as snow melt combines with warmer temperatures in the higher elevations. The Little Thompson is also running high and members of the river coalition are monitoring potential trouble spots along the river. Repairs continue on damaged roads within the Pinewood Springs community and on CR 47 towards Big Elk Meadows.

ROADS: 
Larimer County will continue to update the community on road closures and ongoing repairs on their website - click HERE.

RESIDENT & COMMUNITY NEEDS:
The Larimer County Long Term Recovery Group and Colorado Spirit/Mountain Outreach Teams will continue to monitor existing recovery and flooding issues throughout the county and, if possible, will provide additional volunteer support.

Thank you for all of your emails offering support. Special thanks to the American Red Cross as well as Serve 6.8 and Team Rubicon for their swift assistance in filling thousands of sandbags (in the pouring rain.) 

Larimer County is very fortunate to have such an incredible network of faith-based and charitable organizations active in disaster in addition to a very proactive team of emergency managers and responders. Together, it's a great team.

If you have any questions, please email Laura Levy at [email protected] or call 303-931-8080. 

Wishing you a happy, dry and uneventful Sunday,

Laura Levy
Larimer VOAD Chair

Website: www.larimerVOAD.org
Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/larimerVOAD
Twitter: www.twitter.com/larimerVOAD

The Larimer VOAD is continue to monitor storm conditions and is working closely with local communities, the American Red Cross and Larimer County. 

According to the National Weather Service, another band of precipitation will arrive later this afternoon. If heavy rains occur, we expect some flooding. If heavy snow arrives later tonight and tomorrow, we expect there will be some power outages due to downed power lines. We are encouraging residents to prepare just in case they lose power.

The Larimer County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) has activated at a Level 2 level and limited for situational awareness and damage assessment. The Larimer VOAD is participating in the EOC activation via phone and will continue to be standing by ready to respond to requests if it is required. 

The Red Cross has three shelters ready in the region.

We will continue to post notices and will let you know if the Larimer VOAD is going to formally activate. Please do not call the County or EOC directly.

The Larimer VOAD is also happy to coordinate volunteer needs in Weld and Boulder counties as needed. 

Larimer VOAD Chair resides in Pinewood Springs and is actively involved in assisting with community needs in that region. Although there are some closures due to low water crossings, the community is safe with no major damage and continues to prepare for more rain later today.
If you have any questions, please continue to email Laura Levy at [email protected]. Email is the preferred way to communicate this weekend as phone access may be limited.