.Sept 11-14, 2013
Afternoon downpours that last 20 minutes in late summer in this mountainous and semi-arid climate are common. Rarely do we have an all day rain that lasts into the night, and starts again at dawn. And almost never do we have a week of that kind of weather. After dinner with my parents in Estes Park the evening of September 11, 2013, we decided to head home to Loveland. The rain wasn’t letting up.
As we drove down the mountain, we could see the Big Thompson River lapping the road, and water pouring through the sandstone and granite walls of the Narrows – a steep canyon near the bottom of the drive. The thought never occurred to us that we were on the verge of disaster in that canyon. By this time the next day, 17 miles of road would be washed out, and houses, cars, all manner of debris would be found miles away, along the river.
I have always thought that our God works in mysterious ways. This day before and the days that followed the flood, are a great example of His power and wisdom. He couldn’t prevent the flood. God doesn’t do that. Bad things happen, often because of decisions made by humans. Dams, asphalt, development, lack of vegetation, redirected rivers, houses built in an area prone to flooding all contributed to the disaster, along with the very nature of the mountains.
What God did for us personally was to lead us to get ourselves off the mountain, to get me home without being stuck on the wrong side of the river after working the next day, and to make a way for me to know my parents in Estes Park were safe and well. He made a chemical camp toilet available online and got it delivered to my parents, when I had been told there were no more. The sewer system was wrecked on the south and west side of Estes Park. Port-a-Potties were placed on strategic corners, and were not to be removed until Thanksgiving! My parents were 86 years old in 2013. Hiking to a usable toilet was not an option for them. Coming down to stay with us in Loveland was out of the question, due to stubbornness, road damage and reconstruction.
I volunteer as a nurse in many situations when recruited. But when I knocked on the locked back door at the Red Cross shelter being stocked and staffed in Loveland, it was out of character for me. It was an impulsive move on my part…..a voice in my head on Sept. 14, told me I was needed there. The only nurse on site answered, her face terribly swollen and red. It seems a hornet’s nest was disturbed by children playing outside that same door about 20 minutes earlier. The children had multiple stings. Adults were also stung, including the nurse and the children’s parents, who rescued the screaming children. They needed more Benedryl and some epinephrine. I had both at home.
My husband, Tony, left to go get the medications. While he was gone, an EMT arrived via helicopter, but had no epinephrine. I was asked to stay for the day, so the nurse, with a dose of Benedryl already in her, could rest and recover before working. The Red Cross office in Denver decided I could be there, despite not being a Red Cross trained volunteer. While sadly, there were seven lives lost during the flood, there could have been dozens or even hundreds more lives lost at a different time of year.
From my perspective, the most impactful thing God did for me, was to put me at the door at the Red Cross Shelter that day, at that moment. A child having anaphylaxis got epinephrine in time to prevent a disastrous outcome from a hornet sting. Others got Benadryl that prevented further swelling and discomfort. The people brought into the shelter all day, caked in mud, and discouraged, had a nurse to check them out, do some first aid, and help arrange for medication to be sent over from area pharmacies. The oxygen tank arrived before the person who needed it arrived at the shelter. That was a mystery, until an elderly woman arrived by helicopter from the local hospital emergency department (on the other side of the river). She needed it, but didn’t know how that particular device worked. We figured it out together, and then reached her family to come get her. Thankfully, they were able to get to her.
Stephen Ministry and nursing has taught me good listening skills, and much of what was needed that day was to simply sit and listen. Many of these people had lost every material possession. At about 6 p.m. the hornet stung nurse was ready to get to work and I went home. By the next day, the shelter was fully staffed for around the clock support and care when needed. My feeling of being guided to that back door of the building had been almost overwhelming. I praise God for his hand in caring for us all in a bad situation.
Susan McColl, October 2023
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