Flood Watches & Warnings In Northern Colorado: Friday, September 13, 2013 [UPDATED 8:00 AM]

Flood warnings for Weld and Larimer Counties today.

UPDATE: 8:00 AM

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS ISSUED A * FLOOD WARNING FOR... WESTERN ARAPAHOE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... WESTERN WELD COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... NORTHEASTERN PARK COUNTY IN CENTRAL COLORADO... JEFFERSON COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... LARIMER COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO... CLEAR CREEK COUNTY IN CENTRAL COLORADO... WESTERN ADAMS COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... NORTHEASTERN DOUGLAS COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... BROOMFIELD COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... GILPIN COUNTY IN CENTRAL COLORADO... DENVER COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO... BOULDER COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO...

* UNTIL 730 PM MDT FRIDAY

* SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING INCLUDE... DENVER...FORT COLLINS...WESTERN GREELEY...WESTERN AURORA... LAKEWOOD...THORNTON...ARVADA...WESTMINSTER...CENTENNIAL... BOULDER...LONGMONT...LOVELAND...BROOMFIELD...HIGHLANDS RANCH... COMMERCE CITY...NORTHWESTERN PARKER...LITTLETON...NORTHGLENN... BRIGHTON...ENGLEWOOD...WHEAT RIDGE...LAFAYETTE...GOLDEN... WINDSOR...LOUISVILLE...ERIE...GREENWOOD VILLAGE...EVERGREEN... SUPERIOR AND FEDERAL HEIGHTS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES IN URBAN AREAS. ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS...STREAMS AND OTHER LOW LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF FLOOD WATERS. ONLY A FEW INCHES OF RAPIDLY FLOWING WATER CAN QUICKLY CARRY AWAY YOUR VEHICLE.

...FLASH FLOOD THREAT STILL EXISTS THIS MORNING... .

RAIN DIMINISHED IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS ALONG THE FRONT RANGE...BUT ANOTHER AREA OF RAIN WILL MOVE FROM SOUTH TO NORTH OVER THE AREA THIS MORNING. WHILE HEAVY RAIN IS NOT EXPECTED TO BE WIDESPREAD...SOME PLACES MAY RECEIVE ANOTHER INCH OF RAIN THIS MORNING. WITH CREEKS ALREADY HIGH AND SOILS SATURATED...ADDITIONAL RAIN WILL RESULT IN QUICK RISES IN SMALLER STREAMS. IT WILL NOT TAKE MUCH RAIN TO CAUSE ADDITIONAL SMALL STREAM FLOODING. ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON MDT TODAY... THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES FOR

* PORTIONS OF CENTRAL COLORADO...NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO AND NORTHEAST COLORADO...INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...WESTERN WELD...BROOMFIELD...WESTERN ADAMS...WESTERN ARAPAHOE... DENVER...DOUGLAS...WESTERN ELBERT...AND PORTIONS OF LARIMER...BOULDER...JEFFERSON...CLEAR CREEK...GILPIN AND PARK COUNTIES BELOW 9000 FEET.

* UNTIL NOON MDT TODAY

* MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL IS STILL POSSIBLE THIS MORNING. ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAIN WILL RESULT IN QUICK RISES AND NEW FLOODING ON SMALL STREAMS.

* RAINFALL IS EXPECTED TO BECOME MORE SHOWERY AND LESS WIDESPREAD THIS AFTERNOON...THOUGH THERE MAY STILL BE SOME THREAT OF LOCALIZED HEAVY RAINFALL.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS MAY DEVELOP THAT LEAD TO FLASH FLOODING AND SERIOUS DEBRIS FLOWS. FLASH FLOODING IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION SHOULD FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS BE ISSUED.

UPDATE: 6:00 AM

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS EXTENDED THE * FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR... SOUTHEASTERN LARIMER COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO... * UNTIL 800 AM MDT FRIDAY * AT 1236 AM MDT...EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT REPORTED SEVERE FLASH FLOODING CONTINUING IN BIG THOMPSON CANYON AND THE CITY OF LOVELAND. FLOODING WAS ALSO OCCURRING ON THE LITTLE THOMPSON RIVER AND IN SMALLER DRAINAGES IN SOUTHEASTERN LARIMER COUNTY. THIS IS A FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY FOR THE BIG THOMPSON CANYON AND LOVELAND. SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW! THIS IS A LIFE THREATENING SITUATION! * SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING INCLUDE... LOVELAND...WINDSOR...ESTES PARK...BERTHOUD AND DRAKE. FLOOD WATERS ARE MOVING DOWN BIG THOMPSON CANYON FROM ESTES PARK INTO LOVELAND. THE FLOW CONTINUES TO INCREASE ON BOTH THE NORTH FORK AND THE MAIN STEM OF THE BIG THOMPSON RIVER. THE FLOW IN THE NORTH FORK OF THE BIG THOMPSON RIVER IS GREATER THAN IT WAS IN THE 1976 FLOOD. THE FLOW ON THE MAIN STEM IS THE LARGEST SINCE THAT FLOOD. FLOOD WATERS IN THE CANYON AND IN THE CITY OF LOVELAND WILL CONTINUE TO RISE THROUGH SUNRISE...AND FLOODING WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE EASTWARD INTO WELD COUNTY. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND NOW. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND LIFE THREATENING SITUATION. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO TRAVEL UNLESS YOU ARE FLEEING AN AREA SUBJECT TO FLOODING OR UNDER AN EVACUATION ORDER. EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF CREEKS AND STREAMS...ROADS AND ROADSIDE CULVERTS. THE HEAVY RAINS COULD ALSO TRIGGER ROCK SLIDES OR DEBRIS FLOWS IN STEEP TERRAIN. MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND NOW. ACT QUICKLY TO PROTECT YOUR LIFE.

THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR THE CACHE LA POUDRE RIVER AT FORT COLLINS. * UNTIL THIS EVENING...OR UNTIL THE STREAM FALLS BELOW FLOOD STAGE. * AT 4:15 AM FRIDAY THE STAGE WAS 7.6 FEET. * FLOOD STAGE IS 10.5 FEET. * RECORD FLOODING IS FORECAST. * FORECAST...RISE ABOVE FLOOD STAGE BY EARLY THIS MORNING AND CONTINUE TO RISE TO NEAR 12.2 FEET BY THIS MORNING. THE RIVER WILL FALL BELOW FLOOD STAGE BY THIS AFTERNOON.