Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Your source for news in Hot Springs County
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There is a lesson to be learned from the recent near-catastrophic failure of the Oroville Dam in California. That dam is of similar construction as our Boysen Dam. Extended heavy rains filled the reservoir behind the dam to the extent that the spillway was activated to prevent overflow and breaching of the dam. The spillway itself began to erode and fail. An emergency evacuation of 180,000 people below the dam was instituted because the dam was in danger of failing. I had an enlightening experience about rain potential in Colorado. A good frien...
This installment continues the series of articles that propose possible solutions to dealing with the geologic hazards of the Bighorn River Floodplain. The following is primarily focused on low-level flooding of several feet above flood stage with damage more or less confined to the floodplain. The limits of the floodplain, upon which most of Thermopolis is situated, are obvious. Stand on Broadway and look west. The west edge of the floodplain is right at Eighth Street where the street begins the climb up to the plateau west of town. The east...
The rest of this series will propose best solutions to dealing with the geologic hazards of the Bighorn River Floodplain. A previous column described the geologic hazards caused by the Wind River Canyon rockslides. These rockslides are a threat to motorists, trains and even the town of Thermopolis. The canyon closures and the vehicle and train wrecks are obvious reminders of the dynamic force of gravity at work on the walls of the canyon, often aided by precipitation and train vibration. A more catastrophic event would be a large-scale...
In a previous article I described how the Wind River is an antecedent stream which pre-existed the Owl Creek Mountains. As the mountains were uplifted during the Laramide Orogeny, the river maintained its grade by down-cutting and creating the Wind River Canyon. In addition to maintaining the river’s grade, the river’s course was also maintained. The sinuous curvatures of this river’s course classifies the river as a “meandering stream.” The curves we enjoy when driving through the Canyon are the same meander curves that the river had over 70 m...
Our town and county leaders wisely built the first county hospital on “hospital hill” overlooking Hot Springs State Park. They realized from experience that the floodplain of the Bighorn River was subject to flooding on a semi-annual basis. Locating a hospital on the floodplain would subject it to periods when it could not be used due to flooding and potential ruin. The building of the Boysen Dam during the 1950s has provided many great benefits including limited flood control. Consequently, the current hospital was built directly on the flo...
