Title
2013 Flood Update and Recognition
Body
Summary and Background Information:
Colorado experienced unprecedented rainfall starting on September 10, 2013 that resulted in devastating flooding. The Commerce City area received as much as 10 inches of rain, and a typical September annual average rainfall for Metro Denver is 1.3”. Significant rainfall came from upstream, in addition to the rain falling in the City. Runoff from Aurora drained to Sand Creek and from Denver into Commerce City and the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. It was later reported that the storm event was considered a one-thousand (1,000) year event, or a 0.1% chance of happening in any given year.
Emergency response to the flooding began the night of September 11 and continued through the morning of September 16, 2013. The City coordinated emergency response with multiple partners (internal and external).
• No loss of life of injuries
• No significant structural damage
• Significant damage to trail facilities
• Consistent communication with community and other audiences
The agency partners and staff that assisted during the flood event will be recognized at the City Council meeting on November 18, 2013.
During the event, all City Departments participated in the management of the emergency. Some of the major operational components included coordination, road closures, evacuations, and emergency shelter.
Coordination
• Emergency Operations Center (activated evening of 9/11)
• South Adams County Fire, Northglenn Ambulance, emergency response teams from Arapahoe and Douglas counties, and numerous others.
• Emergency Declaration (9/12, 1:21 p.m.)
• Closed city buildings
Road Closures
• More than a dozen, including major roads such as US Hwy 85, Hwy 2, E. 96th Avenue and E. 88th Avenue
Evacuations
• Three areas:
§ Fairfax Park / Shady Lanes
§ Mile High Greyhound Park
§ Irondale
• Humans and large animals
• Door-to-door notification
• Reverse 911 (FirstCall) notification (74% connection rate, also in Spanish)
• Press releases and social media
Shelter
• Emergency shelter established by the Red Cross at Adams City High School. 350 beds were onsite, 55 were used.
• Handled special needs evacuees from Woodridge
• Police department assumed control of shelter Thursday evening
On Friday, September 13, 2013 the City hosted a briefing in the Police Department on the event and immediate recovery efforts. Presentations from the City and the RMANWR Manager preceded a tour of the Refuge and impacted areas of the City including Fairfax Park and Kearney Middle School. Special guests included:
• U.S. Senator Michael Bennet
• U.S. Senator Mark Udall (Regional Director)
• U.S. Congressman Ed Perlmutter and staff
• Adams County Board of County Commissioners (Henry and Tedesco) and staff
• Commerce City Council (six members)
A countywide Disaster Assistance Center was set up at the Commerce City Recreation Center on Wednesday, September 18 and served approximately 100 residents through Saturday, September 21, 2013.
The Police Department completed an after action report on October 14, 2013 with several data points worth noting.
• 1190 Calls for service were taken via ADCOM.
• 35 outside entities assisted our agency with this event.
• 10 agencies were involved in the Incident Command (EOC).
• Nearly 400 calls were handled in our Ad-Hoc call center in records
• 3 Evacuation orders were given
§ E 64th Ave (SOUTH), Highway 2 (WEST & NORTH), Holly St (EAST)
§ Shady Lane Mobile Home Park (88 Units) and neighborhood north of Fairfax Park
§ Irondale (Highway 2 (EAST), E 88th Ave (NORTH), Rosemary (WEST), Quebec Parkway (SOUTH)
• Two shelters were opened and housed nearly 150 people
§ Woodridge Terrace evacuated 93 residents using 16 ambulances.
§ 4 hours to evacuate all patients
• 114 animals were evacuated
• Closure of nearly 10 miles of roadways throughout the event with the use of numerous barricades and nearly 500 traffic cones.
The After Action Report includes a dozen “Lessons Learned”, and the City Manager and Police Chief will be working to implement the improvements to further prepare for future events. The final report identified a total of 12 specific areas of improvement under the following main categories:
• Technology (software, forms, phones, radios)
• Communication (weather info, contact info, businesses, situation reports, planning)
• Training (ICS, long term IEMC)
• Fatigue
FEMA
Preliminary Damage Assessments were conducted in the days immediately following the event. The purpose was to determine if certain thresholds were met to provide additional categories of federal assistance that may be available. The City staff convened a multi-departmental team to coordinate initial flood recovery and attended Adams County recovery meetings on we weekly basis. The County conducted their own After Action meeting on November 5, and will be presenting a report to the County Commissioners by the end of the year. FEMA opened a Disaster Recovery Center at 4711 E. 69th Avenue 9:00am to 7:00pm, 7 days per week for approximately 30 days. The purpose was to continue reaching out to the community and providing an in-person registration point for residents.
FEMA provided a confidential list of addresses that have registered to for assistance to the County which included the following “cities”
• 133 Commerce City
• 21 Henderson
• 1 Dupont
On October 15, FEMA held a kick-off meeting specifically for Commerce City and will have individuals assisting the City with required paperwork through December. The main objective of the new on-site team is to assist the City with paperwork, maximize the reimbursements, and to ensure compliance with a future audit of the federal funds received.
Also on October 15, Governor John Hickenlooper announced a new website that will serve as a comprehensive one-stop location for information about recovery efforts related to the historic flooding in Colorado last month.
www.ColoradoUnited.com <http://www.ColoradoUnited.com>
On November 6, the Governor reported over $15 million in charitable giving to aid in recovery efforts. Everyone is encouraged to register with FEMA and contact 211 to be connected with United Way and a variety of charitable organizations assisting with recovery efforts.
Anyone who may have been impacted by the floods needs to register even if they don’t think they need help. Mold and respiratory problems may take weeks or months to develop, but if registration is not received by the deadline, FEMA may not be able to assist.
Reminder - Individuals or businesses seeking assistance need to register with FEMA at:
800-621-FEMA (3362) or www.DisasterAssistance.gov <http://www.DisasterAssistance.gov>
Registrations extended to November 30, 2013 - Final deadline
Colorado Spirit Crisis Counseling
Flood Recovery Program
Community Reach Center Team
303-853-3500
www.communityreachcenter.org <http://www.communityreachcenter.org>
On October 18, the City hosted the monthly Mayors/Managers breakfast at Buffalo Run Golf Course and received an update from Ryan Doyle with Adams County. He provided a short briefing on the event, recovery efforts, and FEMA coordination. He reiterated the need for individuals and businesses to register with FEMA just in case they have damage or unmet needs that may not be currently identified. FEMA closed the Countywide Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) at 4711 E. 69th Avenue, Commerce City as of Saturday, October 19. Registrations with FEMA are still being accepted online and via telephone.
On October 21, staff from Public Works and Parks spent an entire day with FEMA representatives conducting site visits of damages. Preliminary Damage Assessments were conducted with FEMA immediately following the event, and the site visits in late October included a more formal review of the damages to determine initial eligibility for reimbursement.
On October 22, staff from the Finance Department met with FEMA representatives to review the requirements for reimbursement for emergency work and planned permanent work related to the flood. The emergency work (Category A and B) was immediately approved as part of the disaster declaration and included debris removal and emergency protective measures. Permanent Work (Category C through G) will be approved on a project by project basis on the Request for Public Assistance forms. Staff is also working on identifying mitigation projects that may be constructed in the future to prevent or reduce flooding threats. This is a longer term process and may take several years to resolve.
Categories of Work
Emergency Work
A- Debris
B- Emergency Protective Measures
Permanent Work
C- Roads and Bridges
D- Water Control Facilities
E- Buildings and Equipment
F- Utilities
G- Other
Donated Resources (A and B only)
Mutual Aid
Small Projects - project worksheets under $67,500
• If items are already completed we receive our 75%
• If we submit requests for items that aren’t completed yet we still get the money now; however someone from FEMA will come back to verify the work is done and sign off
Large Projects - project worksheets over $67,500 we are paid on actual amounts spent, we can submit partial requests
All damage assessments are due 60 days from the kick-off meeting. Staff is working closely with the FEMA representatives to complete all of the necessary paperwork, which will be subject to future federal audit. Emergency work (Cat A-B) shall be completed six (6) months, while Permanent work (Cat C-G) shall be completed within eighteen (18) months, both from date of declaration.
406 Hazard Mitigation - Improved and Alternate Projects are funded at 75% with the State picking up funding for 12.5%, so the local share is 12.5%. 404 Hazard Mitigation projects are managed by the State.
The City has completed a damage assessment and project list and the latest draft is attached for reference. Bids from several of the parks and trail repairs are still outstanding. The City insurance deductible through CIRSA is $100,000 and all claims are expected to exceed that amount. The City is working to determine if FEMA will pay 75% of the deductible to CIRSA. Salaries for exempt employees who worked during the event are not eligible, but the majority of the staff time will be reimbursable. The number of hours of police vehicles were in service is also an eligible expense. Direct administrative costs may also be eligible, and staff is working with FEMA on that item. As a reminder, FEMA does not make anyone whole, but does provide 75% reimbursement. Since the State will be stepping in for one-half of the balance (25%), the total local cost should be 12.5%. As of November 8, 2013 the total costs are estimated at $718,906.01.
On October 3, the Governor visited Commerce City and toured the heavily damaged Sand Creek corridor. Staff is also working with Metro Wastewater on completing repairs to the south side of Sand Creek near the confluence with the South Platte River. Metro will be initiating and funding the repairs, which are estimated between $2-5 million. The City will assist in coordinating the reimbursement through FEMA and will also have input on the design and aesthetics of the improvements. The City will not be a financial participant in the repairs and improvements and the other agencies are seeking FEMA funding assistance.
The City is working on completing repairs at 47th Avenue near the confluence and is coordinating with UDFCD. Design and engineering is being prepared for bid packages with the goal to have contracts completed by the end of 2013 and construction in the first quarter of 2014. CIRSA and FEMA have visited all of the locations and have granted preliminary approval based on their own documentation.
The Buffalo Run Golf Course was also impacted by the event, and included periodic closures of the restaurant and golf course at various times over several days.
• Golf course
§ Closed Thursday and Friday, reopened Saturday
§ Closed Monday and Tuesday for additional cleanup
• Bison Grill closed early Thursday after lunch, open all other times
Several segments of the trail system through the City were impacted short and long-term by the event.
• Sand Creek Trail
• Fernald Trail
• Second Creek Trail
• Medians
• Park Rentals
Recreation was also impacted by several roof leaks at the City Recreation Center and early closures, but no long-term issues.
• Closed early at 1pm, Thursday
• Closed early at 4pm, Friday
• Open normally at 5:30am both days
• Used as the short-term Disaster Assistance Center for Adams County Wednesday through Saturday of the following week
At the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge (RMANWR), the Havana Pond dam structure failed, which caused the increased potential for flooding in Commerce City. Staff has been participating in the meetings with the US Fish and Wildlife Services (USFWS) and Urban Drainage and Flood Control District (UDFCD). The UDFCD believes this facility was built in the early- to mid-60s by Denver, before the District was formed in 1969. However, Havana Pond is located on Federal property in Adams County.
The City and County of Denver as the lead agency and UDFCD have primary responsibility including meeting state dam safety requirements. UDFCD performs routine maintenance, including debris pickup. The District also completed repairs to the interior slope, outlet pipe and structure in response to deficiencies noted in previous dam safety inspections. All funds expended in maintenance activities are Denver and UDFCD, no federal funds are involved. The preliminary damage assessment to repair the dam is $23.8 million. The City will not be a financial participant in the repairs and improvements and the other agencies are seeking FEMA funding assistance.
Long Term
Staff is continuing to work on three additional projects related to the long-term recovery of the community. Flood mitigation projects are being studied and the City is evaluating the opportunities to implement long-term capital improvements with the assistance of FEMA. The three initial projects and their estimated cost are outlined below:
• Fernald Trail Pipe Rehabilitation $1.26 million
• Fairfax Park Outfall Improvements $7.39 million
• First Creek Crossing of E 96th Ave $600,000
The IT Department at the City is partnering with DRCOG to include more detailed mapping of the City using Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging (LIDAR). By using laser technology, more detailed 3D maps may be produced illustrating detailed topography not currently available. The City will be participating as part of a regional effort, which will dramatically decrease the cost for each community.
The City is working closely to assist with regional efforts as well. FEMA and the owners of the Mile High Marketplace contacted the City to request permission to locate temporary trailers at the MHMP. The potential negative externalities were discussed with the owners and FEMA and an appropriate level of permitting was completed. The trailers may be on site as a staging area for up to two years as the other regions of the state are recovering. No residential occupancy is planned nor allowed during the time of the permit. The efforts of FEMA were recently highlighted on 9News on November 4, 2013.
At the meeting on November 18, staff will provide additional graphics including photos from the event. Employees and external partner agencies that assisted during the emergency and subsequent recovery efforts will be recognized at the conclusion of the presentation.
In conclusion, staff believes the recovery effort may take several years and will provide an update on the final financial impact with future reports.
Attachments
2013 Flood Update and Recognition presentation (Power Point)
FEMA Public Assistance Kick-Off Meeting information
Commerce City Damage Assessment and Project List
Staff Responsible (Department Head): James Hayes, AICP
Staff Member Presenting: James Hayes, AICP