Colorado Flooding Could Keep Tourists Away

Governor declared Colorado "open for business" just a year ago after deadly wildfies

A little more than a year after Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper insisted his wildfire-ravaged state was still ''open for business,'' he may have to throw another lifeline to the state's billion-dollar tourism industry as the world takes in the startling images of dramatic flood rescues and washed-out roads.

The flooding has struck at the very mountains that give the state its identity and attract millions of hikers, campers and skiers. Months and possibly years of painstaking, expensive repairs lie ahead, but Colorado officials must also deal with a second problem— the risk that catastrophic damage could keep tourists away, even from places that are unharmed.