Kit Carson County, Colorado severe weather history spans 1,324 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 63.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #56 nationally and #4 in Colorado.
1,324
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
8
Direct injuries
$3.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Kit Carson County, Colorado severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Kit Carson County, Colorado severe weather history averages 17.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 413 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 75 events fall before 1990 and 1,249 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $1.7M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Kit Carson County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 840 | 0 | $1.0M | 4.83 | 1958–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 307 | 0 | $1.7M | 100 | 1971–2026 |
| Tornado | 119 | 0 | $469K | F2 | 1952–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 36 | 0 | $114K | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flood | 14 | 0 | $200K | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2012 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2003 |
Decade by decade
Kit Carson County, Colorado severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
137 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 135 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-07-07 | EF3 | 0 | 8 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-08-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2015-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-10-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-10-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-07-07 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1988-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-05-06 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-04-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Kit Carson County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 6, 1973 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $25K | |
| Jun 3, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | FLAGLER | 0 | 1 | $100K |
| Aug 17, 1991 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| May 8, 1952 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A severe microburst destroyed two airport hangars and damaged several aircraft inside. The only hangars destroyed were those oriented north-south. Another hangar nearby received only minor damage. Peak winds measured were from the west.
A farmstead received severe wind damage as an intense Rear Flank Downdraft swept across Kit Carson county about 8 miles north of Stratton. An unoccupied trailer home, barn and grain bin were destroyed, and damage occurred to several vehicles and numerous light poles. Cattle feeders were also damaged, and a total of three irrigation pivots in the area were toppled.
A number of buildings in Seibert sustained damage. The post office roof had roughly half the shingles blown off. One machine shed was completely destroyed, with the foundation blown clean. A second machine shed, that was built using concrete blocks, only had a third of the roof blown off. A building in town had the entire roof blown off. A pine tree was uprooted and resting on the house next to it. A small machine shed was flipped over and blown onto a road in town. There were also many homes with vinyl siding destroyed on the windward side of the home from the hail and wind.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
7,023
Population (ACS)
$240K
Median home value
7
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25, 2023 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Mar 28, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 5, 2005 | Coastal Storm | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Jun 19, 2002 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| Jan 29, 1977 | Drought | DROUGHT | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Burlington 363
- Stratton 207
- Seibert 185
- Flagler 154
- Vona 127
- Burlington Arpt 123
- Bethune 113
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Kit Carson County, Colorado?
1,324 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $3.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Kit Carson County?
Hail, with 840 recorded events — 63.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Kit Carson County?
137 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 135 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Kit Carson County?
7 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Kit Carson County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Kit Carson County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Kit Carson County as very low risk, placing it in the 32 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Kit Carson 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
- Kiowa County 500
- Lake County 8
- Jefferson County 657
- La Plata County 256
- Jackson County 11
- Larimer County 915
Cite this page
“Kit Carson County, Colorado.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/colorado/kit-carson-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.