Hundreds of Church members spent Saturday helping clean up homes damaged by massive flooding in northern Colorado.
A year’s worth of rain hit the area in four days and caused rivers and streams to overthrow their usual banks. Scores of bridges were destroyed by the raging waters.
The rivers carried mud and silt into the homes and businesses of thousands of people. Basements filled with water, and in some cases entire homes were destroyed or carried away by the water.
More than 40 people from the Berthoud ward and other nearby wards helped one victim, Kay Green, whose historic farm house filled with mud and water on Thursday night. Her home usually sits along a peaceful trickling creek. This week, that creek turned into a raging river.
Here is a picture of the bridge near her home destroyed by the water:
The brothers and sisters involved were alerted to the need for service by messages sent out by the Loveland stake presidency and local ward leaders.
More than six feet of water and mud filled the Green basement, breaking windows and seeping into every room and closet. Here is a picture of people helping dig out the mud. You can see marks on the walls in the background from the water.
Church members spent hours on Saturday dragging items out of the basement. Some of the furniture and family heirlooms can be saved — others had to be thrown out.
Many other homes in the area suffered significant damage. At least four people died because of the storm, and thousands more are trapped in the nearby mountains hoping for rescue. The saga of the Colorado floods will be going on for some time.