Mandatory evacuation orders for the second of the two floods were lifted Tuesday evening as the San Juan River receded to low flood stages, allowing residents home to again assess damage to their properties.
But the help for those affected started well before that, beginning with the opening of the evacuation shelter at the Ross Aragon Community Center and continuing with groups and individuals seeking to help and donated to recovery efforts.
Pagosa Springs Town Manager David Harris noted Wednesday he’s been pleased to see the number of people who came out to help their neighbors during the flooding and the groups showing up to help with remediation.
“It’s great to see so many groups stepping forward and offering to help,” he said.
Affected residents
Harris indicated that, first, people affected by the flooding should contact their insurance.
“If individuals are affected, they do need to contact their insurance company and take a lot of pictures,” he said. “Your ... camera is your best friend on this one. Just document, document, document.”
Harris explained Wednesday he’s noticed a number of vendors are “suddenly” in town offering their services.
“People need to do their homework,” he said, noting that many are likely reputable, but people need to be sure.
On Wednesday, the Community Foundation serving Southwest Colorado relayed that flood recovery resources can be accessed by dialing 2-1-1, texting to 898-211 or visiting 211colorado.org. You may also call 1-800-REDCROSS or visit redcross.org to see if you are eligible for Red Cross Recovery Assistance.
It also announced that it had activated the Archuleta Community Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) to help community-based organizations offering support through emergency situations.
Archuleta County also offers a webpage featuring flood recovery resources for southwest Colorado: https://www.archuletacounty.gov/southwest-colorado-flood-recovery-resources/.
Not affected, but wanting to help?
Multiple opportunities exist to help those affected by the recent floods, including through donating to the Archuleta CERF administered by the Community Foundation.
On Wednesday, the Community Foundation announced that it, with the Town of Pagosa Springs and Archuleta County are activating the Archuleta CERF to assist in the distribution of monetary donations “to support the community of Pagosa Springs after unprecedented rain brought flooding and significant damage earlier this week.”
An Archuleta CERF fund has been created specifically for Archuleta County to assist the community in recovering from recent flooding and give individuals who would like to help a safe option for donating funds.
CERF is designated for broad-based community emergencies in Southwest Colorado. Community stakeholders deploy funds, as needed and as available, to community-based organizations supporting our region through emergency situations.
“There are many folks who would like to help, but they aren’t sure where to donate or exactly what they can do to best support the community,” Harris said.
Donating through Archuleta CERF ensures that donations are collected in an efficient manner, and that they will be directed to the appropriate areas of need. Online donations can be made through the Community Foundation’s website, swcommunityfoundation.org, by clicking on the “Donate” button at the bottom of the home page, then selecting “Archuleta CERF.” Checks made out to the Community Foundation – Memo: Archuleta CERF – can be mailed to the P.O. Box 1673 Durango, CO 81302.
“We first activated the Archuleta CERF after the Adobe Fire in 2016 and deployed funding to assist in recovery efforts,” said Briggen Wrinkle, executive director of the Community Foundation. “The Archuleta CERF ensures that all donations support Archuleta County residents and businesses.”
