© Doug Conarroe, North Forty News)Greeley resident Tommy Meyer leads one of his horses to safety as floodwaters from the South Platte River swamped his farm at 22378 Highway 34 east of Greeley on Sept, 13, 2013.
They also braced for the possibility of more rains in the mountains.
Weld County rescue crews used boats and helicopters to evacuate about 30 residents east of Greeley during the night Friday.
And county commissioners also said at least 140 roads have been closed, including parts of Interstate 25.
"It is no doubt an epic event. It is a once in 500 years or 1,000 years situation, Commissioner Sean Conway said.
"This is a fluid situation. It can change any moment. We are anticipating more rainfall in the mountains. That water level (in the South Platte River) could rise rapidly," Conway said.
"Put together a to-go box. Get together your papers... Please, listen to the local authorities."
Families such as the Turners - Mike, Susan and their two kids east of Greeley - stayed put in their homes despite evacuation orders as the South Platte rose slowly around them.
Mike Turner stayed awake until 3 a.m. while the other slept, watching the water engulf his horse pen and farm fields and an oil
tank and well. Saturday morning he saw the damage.
"There is some crude in the water - not a huge amount," he said.
A company official came to shut off the well.
"I'm not too worried about how much (crude oil) gets loose - unless it really starts leaking," Turner said.
Oil drums, tanks and other industrial debris mixed into the swollen river flowing northeast. County officials did not give locations of where the pipeline broke and where other pipelines were compromised.
While the water levels in the South Platte appear to be receding slightly, bridges over the South Platte have been closed as water overflowed the bridges at least as far east as Morgan County.
Oil and gas industry crews have been monitoring wells drilled into the flood plain east of Greeley in Weld County.
One pipeline has broken and is leaking, Weld County Emergency Manager Roy Rudisill. Other industry pipelines are sagging as saturated sediment erodes around the expanding river.
Industry crews "are shutting in the lines, shutting in the wells," Rudisill said.
In a statement, Gary Wockner, of Clean Water Action, said "Fracking and operating oil and gas facilities in floodplains is extremely risky. Flood waters can topple facilities and spread oil, gas, and cancer-causing fracking chemicals across vast landscapes making contamination and clean-up efforts exponentially worse and more complicated."
Rising waters also overflowed sewage treatment plants at Milliken, Evans and other communities. The Firestone Sanitation District has lost the use of water lines and wells.
"Evans is still doing some boiling," Weld County Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer said.
The nearby town of Frederick also issued a boil advisory.
Brett Bloom, Kersey town adminstrator, said he is keeping a close eye on the weather.
"It is receding," he said, "But they are talking about a bunch of rain in the mountains today.
"The Platte? All those rivers dump into it. By the time it hits Evans and Kersey ...it just makes this three times worse."
Thirteen sheriff's deputies were working on the north side of the South Platte and 10 were working on the soth side. County staffers from the jail and the courts were being rolled in to the effort - everybody working 12-hour shifts.
"We are in round three of Team Weld County versus mother nature," Kirkmeyer said.
No deaths have been reported. Three floating structures seen in the South Platte Friday turned out to be unoccupied sheds and out buildings, Kirkmeyer said. The evacuation of a trailer park in Evans appears to have been successfully completed.
"All of the people were able to be evacuated out safely," Kirkmeyer said.
Ignacio Aldana, who lives on Fern Avenue in east Greeley, rode out the flood in an evacuation area overnight. Most of his neighbors evacuated. Some of them left by helicopter.
"It was creepy, like when you watch a horror move," he said.
"Silent. All dark. All you can hear is water rising all around your land."
"You can't really sleep," he said. "I slept a couple of hours but I was kind of scared."
The water rose past the crawl space and reached the level of the first floor. On Saturday, the water remained high as three pumps worked to empty the space under the house.
"You work all your life to get what you've got. And it all can be swept away in a minute."
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