Andy Dinville, Senior Manager, DigitalGlobe Analytics
The recent flooding event that impacted a portion of Colorado’s front range between the Colorado Springs area and the Wyoming border caused unprecedented evacuations and wide-spread damage throughout the region. Once the flooding began, DigitalGlobe activated a FirstLook event, making before and after high resolution satellite imagery of the affected areas available to first responders and government agencies (e.g., Federal Emergency Management Agency, The Red Cross, National Guard, etc.) for the purpose of planning and maintaining situational awareness of the event. FirstLook allows DigitalGlobe to provide much needed insight to those on the ground, within a short amount of time. DigitalGlobe's high resolution satellite images combined with its geospatial analysts’ expertise provide actionable information for first responders in near real-time.
Early on, the event imagery was collected through a brief break in the clouds between the Lyons and Longmont areas of Colorado, north of the Denver metropolitan area. Flooding occurred in urban areas, low-lying ground and storm water drainage. The hardest hit areas, however, were along the foothills between the Rocky Mountains and central Colorado, where moisture-rich upslope winds produced more than a foot of rainfall in localized areas.
In Lyons, Colorado, imagery and analysis confirm that the McConnell Drive Bridge, providing primary access to neighborhoods and schools in the area, was washed away completely. Ongoing flooding is also visible along the St. Vrain River that exits Lyons to the southeast.
The St. Vrain River flows from Lyons to Longmont. The next slide shows the affected flooded areas between the locations. Out on the plains, the water pushed through, over and around the embankments meant to control the river.
