64
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$16K
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Garfield County, Colorado: 64 recorded events between 1974 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 100. That places the county #2,604 nationally and #22 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Garfield County, Colorado: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Garfield County is the 2020s, when 24 of the county's 64 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Garfield County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 27.9% of all recorded severe weather across 9 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #2,604 for this hazard and #22 within Colorado, putting it in the 17.6 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Garfield County with 18 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 26, 1996 | NEW CASTLE | 0 | 1 | 0 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16, 2025 | (1V1)RIFLE ARPT | 52 | $0 |
| Sep 13, 2025 | (1V1)RIFLE ARPT | 50 | $0 |
| Sep 12, 2025 | (1V1)RIFLE ARPT | 50 | $0 |
| Aug 22, 2025 | GARFIELD CO ARPT | 50 | $0 |
| Sep 17, 2024 | REDSTONE | 50 | $0 |
| Sep 16, 2024 | DOUGLAS PASS | 51 | $0 |
| Aug 7, 2024 | (1V1)RIFLE ARPT | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 14, 2024 | GLENWOOD SPGS | 50 | $0 |
| May 29, 2024 | (1V1)RIFLE ARPT | 52 | $0 |
| Oct 1, 2023 | (1V1)RIFLE ARPT | 51 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Garfield County
- Flash Flood 42
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A line of strong thunderstorms produced damaging winds in the Rifle area, including the Rifle Garfield County Airport where the strongest winds were measured. A single engine Cessna aircraft incurred damage as it was tipped sideways onto a wing and also tipped onto its nose.
At 5:44 PM MDT, the KRIL ASOS at Rifle – Garfield County Regional Airport recorded a gust to 60 mph. Other sensors in the area at the time recorded wind gusts of 45 mph to 55 mph. These wind gusts were all associated with a passing thunderstorm, though no damages, fatalities, or injuries were reported in association with it.
At 2:39 PM MDT, the KRIL ASOS at Rifle – Garfield County Regional Airport recorded a wind gust to 58 mph in association with a passing thunderstorm. There were no other recorded gusts with this storm, and no damages, injuries, or fatalities were reported in association with this event.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Garfield County, Colorado?
64 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Garfield County between 1974 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Garfield County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Garfield County measured 100.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Garfield County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Garfield County, Colorado.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/colorado/garfield-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.