Montrose County, Colorado severe weather history spans 130 recorded events between 1968 and 2024. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 23.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,780 nationally and #37 in Colorado.
130
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$1.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Montrose County, Colorado severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Montrose County, Colorado severe weather history averages 2.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 46 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 8 events fall before 1990 and 122 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Montrose County, Colorado record is lightning, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $554K 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 Montrose County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 30 | 0 | $71K | 72 | 1972–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 23 | 0 | $554K | 0 | 1996–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 16 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2017 |
| Flood | 16 | 0 | $44K | 0 | 2001–2023 |
| Hail | 14 | 0 | $0 | 1.75 | 1968–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 10 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2013 |
| Debris Flow | 9 | 0 | $9K | 0 | 2013–2024 |
| Lightning | 6 | 2 | $501K | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Tornado | 3 | 0 | $23K | F1 | 2004–2005 |
| Wildfire | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2003 |
Decade by decade
Montrose 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005-10-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-05-06 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-05-13 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Montrose County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 7, 2006 | Lightning | URAVAN | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 12, 2004 | Lightning | MONTROSE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 7, 2005 | Tornado | OLATHE | 0 | 1 | $20K |
| Jun 21, 1999 | Lightning | OLATHE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Several homes were flooded with water, mud and debris in the Coal Creek area with 2 feet of water estimated over Kiowa Road between 4 and 6 PM MDT on the 24th. One home saw water levels up to 4 feet with significant damage to the residence and property. Several roads had minor damage from mud and cutting of the dirt in areas. Small rocks and boulders were displaced on steep drainages. Rainfall estimates from local residents varied, but averaged near 1.75 inches in less than 2 hours. No homes were declared a total loss and there were no injuries of note or fatalities. The flash flood was, in addition to the heavy rain, the result of overwhelmed canals and culverts.
A microburst traversed a section of the town of Montrose, breaking off numerous large branches and snapping off some trees. Loose objects such as picnic tables, chairs, and barbecue grills were blown over or tossed around. It took three days for the City of Montrose to clean up all of the debris on sidewalks and streets.
A small tornado traveled across adjacent farms along Highway 50 in Montrose County, leaving a narrow damage path 50 to 75 yards wide. A three-sided wood-framed tin-roofed barn, approximately 35' x 12' was lifted up, flipped and carried 20 feet to the W-NW landing on its roof and crushing a large chicken coop. A small chicken coop on the south side of the barn was blown approximately 50-70 feet to the N-NW and its roof was not found. Small limbs were broken on trees, a number of shingles were torn from roofs and impaled on objects, and a trampoline and sheets of tin were lifted and blown up to 75 yards into a field. One of the residents was hit in the leg by a flying chair, and a horse was injured in the leg by flying debris. Residents at one of the farms said they heard a loud "wind" noise and saw a great deal of debris swirling around and a lot of dust obscuring their vision. Reports indicate a number of funnel cloud sightings in the area around the time of the storm damage.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
43,807
Population (ACS)
$388K
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 15, 2002 | Fire | CO – BURN CANYON FIRE – 07/15/02 | 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 Montrose County, Colorado?
130 events are on record between 1968 and 2024, causing 2 direct deaths and $1.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Montrose County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 30 recorded events — 23.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Montrose 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 Montrose County?
9 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Montrose County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Montrose County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Montrose County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 49 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Montrose 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
- Montezuma County 139
- Morgan County 805
- Moffat County 125
- Otero County 445
- Mineral County 7
- Ouray County 52
Cite this page
“Montrose County, Colorado.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/colorado/montrose-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.