In September, torrential rain became detrimental to Northern Colorado as flooding caused damage to more than 5,000 homes and completely decimated more than 1,500, resulting in approximately $2 billion in property damage. The flooding caused eight confirmed deaths, leaving over 1,000 unaccounted for, according to Time magazine. Roughly 20 counties were affected, and among the hardest hit were Lyons, Boulder, El Paso and Larimer. The catastrophic flooding has damaged roads and almost completely wiped out nearly 50 bridges. The damage has resulted in nearly $500 million in bridge and road damage. The flooding left chaos in its wake, closing many schools and businesses in the Northern Colorado area. Some small mountain towns were even left completely isolated, one being Jamestown.

Another problem the nation is facing is the government shutdown, yet Colorado will be among the most affected because the state is also trying to rebuild and the shutdown is a huge setback. Now the state of Colorado will now have to pay the National Guard for reparations, while also taking money from the emergency relief fund to cover the costs, according to the Huffington Post. The state hopes to receive 75 percent of the expense from FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency). Yet, the local government will have to pay the remaining 25 percent to guarantee that the necessary recovery work will carry on without disruption.

For some small mountain towns, the government shutdown could be detrimental, as tourism is a huge industry. Colorado is known for its mountain scenery and national parks which attract the tourists, but now the parks will be in bad shape, and it will be difficult or nearly impossible to reach these towns at all. The economy of Northern Colorado is damaged as it is with the reparation costs, yet the situation will continue worsen with the government shutdown. The total economic damage to Colorado is estimated to be at $2 billion, according to Eqecat, a disaster modeling firm. One thing is for sure, the government needs to find a solution as quickly as possible, because there are other dilemmas to worry aside of Obama Care. While the Democrats and Republicans argue back and forth, the state of Colorado will have to restore itself without the aid of the federal government, hoping for the government to come up with a resolution and return to its duties.