Brian McCabe. The Mountain Mail, July 3
A series of mudslides closed CR 344 just below Cottonwood Lake Thursday, resulting in a voluntary evacuation of 150 people from Cottonwood Lake Campground. The campground will be closed at least until today, when the stability of the area will be evaluated.
“There are unstable rocks and mud just above the road,” Chaffee County Sheriff John Spezze said Thursday night. “There is more rain predicted for tomorrow, so we will be evaluating day by day when it will reopen.” Chaffee County Road and Bridge cleared the road so campers could be evacuated. “There was a series of slides along the road, between the bridge and the campground,” Spezze said. “Water was coming down off the hillside.” Spezze also said they were concerned about the bridge but were able to build a sandbag berm to divert the water. Chaffee County Search and Rescue North and South, Chaffee County Fire Protection District and the U.S. Forest Service assisted in the incident. No one was injured during the mudslide or evacuation. Evacuees were taken to Buena Vista High School.
