An overnight storm that dumped rain over Evergreen and Kittredge washed out bridges, left muddy debris strewn across roads and caused major flooding to homes, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
The storm lingered over the Evergreen area for roughly two hours Wednesday night, dropping about 6 inches of rain, according to unofficial estimates cited by the Sheriff’s Office on its Facebook page.
Reports of flooding damage in Kittredge along Bear Creek note that water line markings on the sides of homes reached 2 to 3 feet and the rain washed out two private bridges near Troublesome Gulch.
The National Weather Service early Thursday reported on its Facebook page total precipitation of up to 3.5 inches in the Evergreen area, causing “rapid rises” along Bear Creek.
Meanwhile, the CoCoRaHS network of rain gauges showed about 3.22 inches of rain fell a few miles directly west of Kittredge overnight.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office also reported that entrances to Jefferson County Parks and Open Space may be impacted.
Officials are asking the public to avoid driving near Bear Creek in Kittredge and to avoid driving through flood waters and debris or around road closures.
The National Weather Service urges residents to be especially cautious if they are driving in or near canyons in Evergreen, Kittredge, Idledale and Morrison.
The good news is that the worst of the storms for the area this week has likely passed, according to Zach Hiris, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Boulder office.
Forecasters are monitoring cloud cover, Hiris said, and conditions for Thursday afternoon and Friday will depend on how quickly temperatures warm up and the cloud cover burns off. Scattered showers and storms are possible both days, particularly Friday, which is expected to be a warmer and drier day “leading us into a pretty hot and breezy weekend for most of the area,” Hiris said.
“Thankfully, these storms look like they will be moving a little bit faster than they were yesterday,” he said, adding that they likely won’t produce as heavy of rain.
This is a developing story that will be updated.