Mesa County Hazard Analysis
Earthquakes
Mesa County is not historically at risk from major earthquakes, but is subject to frequent
minor ones. These minor quakes may trigger land or mudslides and could endanger existing
dams.
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Floods
The Colorado River is a high risk flood area near Grand Junction and along interstate 70
from Rulison to DeBeque. Flooding of the Colorado River also threatens Fruita, Mack, and
Cameo. Flooding of Plateau Creek and Buzzard Creek threatens the towns of Collbran,
Plateau City, Molina, and Mesa. There is also the potential for flash flooding on many of
the smaller streams located in Mesa County, which include Buzzard Creek, West Creek, Roan
Creek, and Mesa Creek. Those areas potentially impacted are listed above and include
Unaweep Canyon, Colorado National Monument area down into the Redlands, John Brown Canyon,
No Thoroughfare Canyon and Lamplite park.
There are a number of dams located in Mesa County: thirty-five Class II and fifteen
Class I. The Class I dams are: Big Creek #3 (Y), Bonham-Wells (Y), Cottonwood #1 (Y),
Cottonwood #2 (Y), Cottonwood #4 (Y), Cottonwood #5 (Y), Hallenbeck #1 (Y), Indian Wash
Detention (Y), Jerry Creek #2 (Y), Junita (Y), Leon Lake (Y), Parker Basin #1 (Y), Parker
Basin #3 (Y), Upper Highland (N), Vega (Y). A failure of Vega Reservoir (Class I) would
inundate ranches from the base of the dam through the town of Collbran. Failure of Granby
Dam, located in Grand County, would inundate Interstate 70 and U.S. 6 & 24 from
DeBeque to Palisade. Failure of the Dillon Dam, in Summit County, would inundate the same
areas.
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Hazardous Materials
Mesa County is a center of commerce in western Colorado and hazardous materials are
commonly transported through the county by truck and rail transport. Designated truck
routes are Highways 139, 141, 50 and Interstate 70. The Union Pacific Railroad operates
two rail lines in Mesa County, their main line is located primarily along the Colorado
River through the County. The secondary line (southern leg) branches off of the main line
near the confluence of the Gunnison and Colorado rivers and is located along the Gunnison
River. It is observed that the majority of the products transported through Mesa County
belong to the hazard classes of 2 (Flammable and Combustible gases), 3 (Flammable and
Combustible liquids), 8 (Corrosive Materials), and 9 (Miscellaneous Hazardous Materials).
As for fixed site facilities, there are several facilities in the county that store and/or
use hazardous materials.
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Landslides
In Mesa County there are many unstable mountain sides, most are traversed by roads and
almost all above streams. Excessive moisture, ground tremors, or even construction
activity can cause activation of these slides. There are a number of slide areas around
Plateau Creek which could cause flooding in DeBeque Canyon. Buzzard Creek poses risk to
pipelines and others, DeBeque Canyon (tunnel landslide) poses risk to I-70 and D&RGH
Railroad, Vega Reservoir poses risk to residents, roads, utility lines and others, and the
Lamplite Park area poses risk to residents and city utilities.
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Mass Casualty
Walker Field, an airport handling private and commercial flights, poses the risk of a mass
casualty air accident as well as the possibility of a hazardous materials incident
involving an aircraft or the fuel storage area. The annual Country Jam Festival also has
the potential for a mass casualty incident with over 100,000 people attending the event
over a 4 day period.
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Terrorism
Mesa County Incident Management
Group Media Release October 15, 2001
United for a stronger America: Citizens'
Preparedness Guide
NOTE:
indicates links to a PDF (portable document format) file which you may download from this site.
You may use a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader
software to view and print these forms.
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Wildfire
Wildfire is a threat to the entire county. According to the Colorado State Forest Service,
in 1990 there were 42 subdivisions, totaling 1, 494 acres, in the urban/wildland interface
area. Much of Mesa County's public land is used for recreation. This increases the risk of
human caused fires. Drought also increases the risk of wildfire as it did in the summer of
1994 when there were several fires in Mesa County. (Check with mapping at the CSFS
for specific areas)
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Winter Storms
Interstate 70 and U.S. 6 &24 are the major highways passing through the county. The
possibility of a mass casualty incident exists on these roadways especially under winter
storm conditions. The potential for lost services to extend for a period of time is a
potential during a severe winter storm, due to normal weather patterns, heavy snow removal
equipment is not abundantly available.