Delta County, Colorado severe weather history spans 70 recorded events between 1993 and 2023. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 30.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,994 nationally and #45 in Colorado.
70
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$6.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Delta County, Colorado severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Delta County, Colorado severe weather history averages 2.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 33 events logged in that decade alone.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $2.6M in reported property damage. In total, 10 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Delta County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 21 | 0 | $2.6M | 78 | 1993–2023 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $25K | 0 | 2001–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2011 |
| Flash Flood | 9 | 0 | $1.6M | 0 | 1998–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 7 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1998–2017 |
| Hail | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0.88 | 1993–2003 |
| Tornado | 3 | 0 | $25K | F1 | 1994–2014 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $36K | 0 | 2000–2003 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $2.0M | 0 | 2023–2023 |
| Dust Devil | 1 | 0 | $3K | 0 | 2005–2005 |
Decade by decade
Delta County, Colorado severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
3 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 3 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-09-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-09-29 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-07-31 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Excessive spring runoff and debris backing up in culverts led to a large sinkhole developing on Highway 133 north of Paonia and south of Somerset, Colorado between mile markers 14 and 19. This resulted in the closure of the highway to allow emergency repairs to be made. The sinking soils were first noticed on April 29, 2023 with the eventual collapse of the highway occurring on May 2, 2023.
A strong eastward-moving thunderstorm cell collapsed over central Delta County and produced damaging winds across portions of eastern Delta County. Measured wind speeds included 79 mph at a location 4 miles northwest of Hotchkiss and 90 mph at a location just under 3 miles southeast of Hotchkiss. The damage pach extended from about 5 miles west-northwest of Hotchkiss to about 7 miles east of Hotchkiss. The width of the damage patch extended from about 2 miles north of Hotchkiss to about just north of Crawford. Numerous trees were downed, with some trees more than 2 feet in diameter where they were snapped off. Many houses and other personal property were damaged, including the historic brick Hotchkiss Barn. An airplane was torn from its moorings and flipped over at the Paonia Airport. Power was out in many locations, though it was restored at most locations by the afternoon on the following day.
A Union Pacific train trestle was washed away, including the super and sub-structure. Portions of a dirt road between Highway 50 and the train tracks in Dominguez Canyon were washed out. The flow of rapidly moving water through this area was estimated to be up to 10 feet deep and 30 yards wide.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
31,598
Population (ACS)
$343K
Median home value
9
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 5, 2005 | Coastal Storm | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Jul 3, 2004 | Fire | CO-MCGRUDER FIRE-07/03/2004 | FM |
| Jun 19, 2002 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| Jul 27, 1984 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, MUDSLIDES, LANDSLIDES & FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Delta County, Colorado?
70 events are on record between 1993 and 2023, causing 0 direct deaths and $6.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Delta County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 21 recorded events — 30.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Delta County?
3 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 3 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Delta County?
9 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Delta County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Delta County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Delta County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 51 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Delta County, Colorado severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Custer County 164
- Denver County 535
- Crowley County 157
- Dolores County 33
- Costilla County 24
- Douglas County 623
Cite this page
“Delta County, Colorado.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/colorado/delta-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.