Ecological Effects of the Lawn Lake Flood of 1982, Rocky Mountain National Park
Mccutchen HE, Herrmann R, Stevens DR. 1993. Ecological Effects of the Lawn Lake Flood of 1982, Rocky Mountain National Park. National Park Service Scientific Monograph Series. NPS/NRROMO/NRSM-93/21. National Park Service. Denver, Colorado
Failure of the Lawn Lake Dam released 831,000 m3 of water with an estimated peak discharge of 5 10 m3 /s down the Roaring River valley. Floodwaters from Lawn Lake Dam overtopped a second dam with a peak discharge of 204 m3 /s. Cascade Lake Dam, 10.8 km downstream, also failed and increased peak discharge to 453 m3 /s. Cascade Lake Dam, a 5.2-m-high concrete gravity dam with a capacity of 14,900 m3 , failed as 1 .28 m of water flowed over its crest. The flood continued down the Fall River into the town of Estes Park, where it caused extensive damage. Peak discharge in the Big Thompson River at Estes Park was 156 m3 /s. We present a summary of the dam failures, hydrologic and dam-break modeling analyses, a discussion of the geomorphic effects of the flood, and an overview of the effects of the flood on the public. The documented 1982 flood indicates the need to improve the understanding of flood processes so that modeling dam-break floods in high-gradient rivers can be improved. These study results provide hydrologic, geomorphic, and flood damage information for the assessment of floods from dam failures and baseline information for scientists conducting related research.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Mccutchen, Henry; Herrmann, Raymond; Stevens, David
- Date of Issue
- 1993-03
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- ROMO , WRD
- Keywords
- abiotic & biotic factors, Alluvial Fans, alpine sediment, Amphibians, avian breeding, Clemson, Ecological Effects, Erosion, Fall River, Flooding, Geochemistry, iron oxides, Lawn Lake Dam, macroinvertebrate community, Mammals, Plant Ecology, Recovery, Roaring River, Vegetation, Water Quality, WRBIB