Floods in Colorado from ABC News and University of Colorado

I wrote about my hopes for the Colorado recalls in Elections to watch today.

Unlike NYC and Toledo, where I really don't have a preferred result, I strongly hope the recalls fail.

They succeeded.  I'm disappointed enough to change the subject to another disaster afflicting Colorado, one caused by bad weather and most likely climate change, the flooding around Boulder and other towns in the north of the state.  ABC News gives the big picture in Colorado Floods: Crews Rescue Families, Animals.

Emergency responders help those trapped by the devastating flooding.

Wow.  That's a very comprehensive report for network TV news exploring not only the human rescue effort and the weather, but also the use of drones and the rescue of people's livestock an pets.  I highly recommend watching the entire 7+ minutes.

The floods were bad enough that the University of Colorado at Boulder announced Friday CU-Fresno State football game postponed.

Saturday’s football game between the University of Colorado and Fresno State has been postponed, university officials decided Friday morning.

After careful consideration, CU-Boulder Chancellor Philip P. DiStefano has decided that the university will not hold a football game tomorrow, and that school officials will discuss a possible make-up date for the game.

“Even though the weather is improving, Boulder is still designated as a national emergency site,” the chancellor said. “Our community is hurting. Many of our students are displaced from their homes, including many of our student-athletes. This is not an appropriate time for us to hold a game that would put pressure on the community, both in terms of security/emergency personnel, but also in diverting attention from people in need.”
...
This is the third game in CU history that has been postponed; in 1963, the CU-Air Force game in Colorado Springs was delayed two weeks after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; and in 2001, CU was set to travel to Pullman to play Washington State on Sept. 15 but all college games were called off after the terrorist attacks on 9/11. That game was made up in the 2004 season but was played in Seattle.

Note how rare an event cancelling a football game is.  It's an example of messing with people's entertainment, and Americans are loath to have to do that.

That's not the only closure or cancellation on campus.  The day before, the university announced Campus still closed; select family housing units remain under evacuation overnight.

The University of Colorado Boulder will remain closed through Friday as rain continues to fall and more storms are expected through tomorrow.

With the current weather conditions and the continuing possibility of flash flooding, the evacuations of the Faculty/Staff housing unit, Athens Court and the ground floor of Newton Court will remain in place. The evacuation has impacted 220 units and 355 family housing residents.
...
“I want to assure parents and others that we have not had any reports of missing students or serious injuries,” said Louise Vale, Vice Chancellor for Administration. “The majority of our campus is well above the flood plain and is not at risk of flash flooding. We want to make sure the buildings are safe before we open them.”

The current assessment is that 25 percent of campus buildings have some form of water damage, including seepage in basements. Contractors have been brought in to pump out water from the basements of Fleming, Norlin and Electrical Engineering.
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All events on Thursday have been cancelled and many will be cancelled Friday as well, including the Pearl Street Stampede. Ralphie’s Corral prior to the Saturday football game has also been cancelled.

That's just Boulder.  I haven't yet checked the news from the other university towns in the state such as Denver, Fort Collins, Greeley, and Golden to find out about the damage and cancelled events there.  I might do that later.  Until then, everyone out there stay safe and dry.