‘It’s like living in a war zone right now,’ Beulah residents cleaning up again after another flash flood, call for more help
BEULAH, Colo. (KRDO) - This weekend, flooding again ravaged Beulah, leading to the death of one man. While the community mourns his loss, they're also cleaning up again.
"It's like living in a war zone right now," Carol Campbell, a Beulah resident, said.
Campbell's yard is covered in full trash bags and debris carried by flash floodwaters.
In the time span from the end of July to Aug. 17, Campbell says they've had 4 major floods in Beulah, and this one on Sunday was the worst.
It was so bad, Campbell says they had to find all the sandbags again that were reinforcing their fence before the floodwaters washed them off.
"It's exhausting. It's very unsettling," Campbell said.
Despite this, Campbell describes her family as one of the lucky ones in Beulah. Their home is still standing. The fire singed trees and took out a shed but left the Campbell home untouched.
However, the future isn't as set in stone.
"The fire chief said that I shouldn't rebuild my wrought iron fence for at least three years because after a big fire event like this, flooding happens for three to five years afterwards. It made me cry," Campbell admitted. "I don't know when it's going to end. We don't."
According to KRDO13's weather team, monsoon season typically wraps up around the end of August. In the fall, they say the rain won't be as heavy, and there won't be the same chances of flash flooding.
Now Campbell is calling on the state government and elected leaders to help.
"The whole thing is a huge tragedy. I think our state government, our governor, our state reps, need to circle the wagons and help. Help Rye, help Beulah, help all, Westcliff, everybody that is affected by these fires; we need help," She said.
KRDO13 reached out to Governor Polis's Office about if the state is working on anything to help southern Coloradans harmed by the flooding magnified by the "Aspen Acres" fire burn scar.
A spokesperson provided the following statement:
"Governor Polis was devastated to hear about the death of Mr. Humphreys and his heart goes out to the Humphreys family and friends. The Aspen Acres fire and following flooding has impacted so many Coloradans and the state remains committed to helping the community recover.
The state is looking at all options to support communities impacted by fires this summer, including a presidential disaster declaration. A Presidential disaster declaration request comes after damages from the emergency are assessed and documented. DHSEM has led preliminary damage assessments for the fire areas with FEMA, SBA, relevant local governments, including Pueblo County and Custer County, and Colorado 211. The teams are currently reviewing the data to determine everything that can be included in a potential request for a Major Disaster Declaration and the next steps of the recovery process.”
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