Floodwaters in the San Juan River hit a 55-year high as heavy rains pummeled Archuleta County early on Tuesday morning, prompting both road and school closures in Pagosa Springs.

The river’s 12.82-foot swell — reached around 5:15 a.m. Tuesday — is the highest water level the river has hit in the town since 1970, a National Weather Service spokesperson confirmed.

Beginning on Friday afternoon, the town saw the river’s water level rise from about 4.09 feet to 12.66 feet in just about 30 hours following heavy rainfall, according to an online water gauge graph from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The water level then decreased to a low of 7.45 feet Monday morning before a second storm again raised it to 12.82 feet in the early hours of Tuesday — within inches of a 100-year high level, which crested at 13.5 feet on June 29, 1927, according to NOAA records. The highest was a year earlier, when it reached 17.8 feet on Oct. 5, 1911.

Damage to sewage infrastructure in town

At 3:12 a.m. Tuesday, as the San Juan continued to rise, a dislodged tree that was floating down the river struck a sewer pipe attached to the bridge across the town’s 1st Street, said Pagosa Springs Mayor Shari Pierce.

That tree, which was one of several pieces of debris to hit the line, took about 50 feet of the pipe downstream with it, causing sewage to start draining into the water, Pierce said. That failure, in addition to the rising floodwaters, prompted authorities to close the street, part of Highway 160, between Highway 84 and Hot Springs Boulevard.

“They’re working to get a bypass going on that so we can get back up and running,” Pierce said. “That is definitely our most critical issue in town.”

The mayor noted that the line connects a lesser-populated area of town and that much of the sewage is likely getting diluted by the amount of river water it is coming into contact with. Additionally, she noted, the town’s infrastructure crews are well-acquainted with the system, which is in need of a facelift.

“We’re trying to pass a ballot issue for a sales tax to help us be able to upgrade some of the sanitation because several pieces of it are failing,” Pierce said. “So, we’ve got some crews that are pretty knowledgeable about these kinds of things and, of course, they had an emergency plan for if something happened down there.”

Pierce called with an update late Tuesday, saying temporary pumps are in place and the sewage issue has been addressed for now.

In addition to the broken pipe, Pierce noted that several residences both within and outside the town have suffered significant property damage from the flooding. There have been no reports of anyone dying from the flood.

Mandatory evacuations remained in place for parts Archuleta County and road closures extended into nearby Hinsdale County, Pierce said.

Resort says flooding a spectacle for visitors

Despite the encroaching floodwaters, those enjoying the hot springs at The Springs Resort — located in downtown Pagosa Springs right next to the San Juan River — remained in their tubs, said the resort’s Vice President of Marketing Jesse Hensle on Tuesday.

“There’s an energy and excitement,” Hensle said. “People are sitting above the river in a safe atmosphere and just watching mother nature put on this show. It’s been this interesting situation, where nature meets nature, and people get to put themselves in the middle of it while sitting in a hot spring pool.”

Of the resort’s 50 pools, 10 are underwater, but nothing seems to be that greatly damaged, Hensle said. Given the more amicable weather coming in, he said he expects the resort to be fully reopen by the end of the day Wednesday.

The videos and reports of the flooding, Hensle said, have led to a surge of visitors canceling their reservations at the resort, even though the true impact has been fairly modest so far.

“The videos look a lot worse than the actual realities we’re dealing with right now,” Hensle said. “We’ve had over 200 cancellations in the past four days. I would say 70% of those are within the next two weeks and 30% are outside that window.”

The cancellations come during what Hensle called “soaking season,” a popular time for the resort during September and October, when the leaves change and children go back to school.

“I can’t echo it enough — because of those videos and everything, people are canceling their reservations far into the future because they think the town has been completely wiped out,” Hensle said. “We’re trying to do our best to combat some of that messaging.”

State-issued disaster, and tax, declarations

Gov. Jared Polis declared a disaster emergency in the area on Sunday due to the flooding.

On Tuesday, the Colorado Department of Revenue waived penalties for some tax filings and moved the deadline to Dec. 31, according to a news release.

The announcement applies to state income tax extensions due on Oct. 15 and state sales taxes due on Oct. 20, according to the release. Now, taxpayers affected by the floods can call the department to request an extension until the end of the year.

“We are supporting the Coloradans who have been impacted by these devastating floods every way we can, and that includes extending our state’s tax deadlines,” Polis said in the release. “I continue monitoring the situation very closely, and emergency and our public safety resources are actively engaged in response and recovery efforts.”

While issuing Sunday’s disaster declaration, the governor tapped state resources, including the Colorado Department of Public Safety’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Colorado State Patrol and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, to help with the flood response, according to a previous news release.

Weather service officials said they expected the waters to drop below the major flood stage by 4 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. An evacuation shelter at the Ross Aragon Community Center — at 451 Hot Springs Blvd. — remains open to anyone affected by the flooding.