“Yes, it’s actually a pretty good story for dams in Colorado during the storms,” said John W. France, vice president and national dam technology leader at URS Corp., Denver. “Only about four to six low-hazard dams failed. Low-hazard dams are those that pose less threat to life and property. And no high-hazard dams failed,” he said. “Although several of those did have unprecedented spillway flows. Those spillways may have sustained some damage, and the water remains at unprecedented levels behind those structures.”

Most major construction projects along the northern Front Range likely will experience some delays, said Michael Gifford, executive director of the Associated General Contractors of Colorado. “We expect this will soon become an all-hands-on-deck situation for some of the local contractors as those needs are assessed. Right now, it’s going to be difficult for contractors with jobs in the affected areas to get their people and materials deliveries into the jobsites. Plus, there’s bound to be ongoing problems with power and sewer systems.”

Heavy-equipment firms in the area said they have not seen a big increase in demand for rentals yet, but “we expect we will soon,” said Steve Malloy, director of John Deere sales at Honnen Equipment Co., Denver. “As soon as they assess exactly what they need, we expect, probably later this week, for things to be fairly robust. It’s just too early to tell, so far.”

Tony Milo, executive director of the Colorado Contractors Association, Colorado’s AGC heavy-highway branch, said it’s too early to know exactly how much the road and bridge repairs will cost. “But members of the Colorado Contractors Association have already been mobilized to help on some emergency repairs and will no doubt be called upon as the water subsides to repair and reconstruct dozens of bridges and roads that have been washed out.”

The storm that caused the heavy rains in Colorado was the result of a seasonal monsoon flow from the Gulf of Mexico that collided with a cold front moving down from Canada. The weather system stalled over the Front Range, creating what local forecasters called “100-year-or-worse floods.” The regions’ seven-day forecast calls for warmer, drier weather and temperatures in the 80s by week’s end.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story was updated at noon on Sept. 17 to reflect revised reports regarding fatalities and damages.