Thousands evacuated in Colorado floods

BOULDER (Colorado): Rare torrential downpours unleashed flash flooding here that killed at least three people, left one missing and forced thousands to flee to higher ground on Thursday as rising water toppled buildings and stranded motorists, officials said. The unusually heavy late-summer rains drenched Colorado's biggest urban centres, stretching 210km along the eastern slopes of the Rockies from Fort Collins near the Wyoming border south through Boulder, Denver and Colorado Springs. "There is water everywhere," said one rescue worker.