Elizabeth Street is a natural drainage into the west side of the main CSU campus.   Between 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. reports began to filter in of ever-deepening water along Elizabeth.   By 10:00 p.m., the situation had become critical.   Various witnesses report that a "Class-III" white water river raged down Elizabeth.   It was about a foot deep at City Park Avenue, and over four-feet-deep down by Shields where industrial-sized dumpsters were seen "bobbing around like corks."   A number of cars were washed away, and several people nearly drowned.   The first floor of a large student housing complex called the International House flooded halfway to the ceilings.   The entire 1,660 cu. ft. per sec. of water poured directly onto campus.

      As it entered campus, the water was forced around some higher terrain just southeast of the large sports arena called colloquially "Moby Gym" (#1 on map) which separates the gym from the Lory Student Center (#2).   It pushed up to, then past, the intersection of Meridian and South Drive near the center of campus.   The water rose around the Student Health Center (#3), where it flowed into the CSU police dispatch office, housed in the basement.   The flooding filled the entire lower level and forced an evacuation at 10:15 p.m.