ARCHULETA and LA PLATA COUNTIES, Colo. — Residents in Archuleta County will be able to return home starting at 6 p.m. Monday as floodwaters continue to recede following unprecedented rainfall in southwestern Colorado over the past several days.

Deputies in Archuleta County had evacuated hundreds of people along the San Juan and Blanco rivers Monday night after remnants of back-to-back tropical storms brought nonstop, heavy downpours to the region over the weekend which continued until Tuesday morning.

Overnight, county officials reported floodwaters had exceeded a peak recorded on Saturday, with water levels reaching nearly 13 feet high before the river flow started to drop, though levels were still too high for anyone to safely go back in.

Earlier in the day, Archuleta County officia

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