69
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$470K
Property damage
Heavy Rain in Mesa County, Colorado: 69 recorded events between 1998 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 0. That places the county #50 nationally and #3 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Heavy Rain in Mesa County, Colorado: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for heavy rain in Mesa County is the 2000s, when 39 of the county's 69 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 Mesa County archive, heavy rain makes up 14.6% of all recorded severe weather across 11 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #50 for this hazard and #3 within Colorado, putting it in the 97.8 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for heavy rain in Mesa County with 20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 1, 2006 | CLIFTON | 0 | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 8, 2016 | WHITEWATER | 0 | 0 | 4 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 12, 2025 | FRUITA | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 30, 2024 | FRUITA | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 21, 2018 | (GJT)WALKER ARPT | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2017 | BRIDGEPORT | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2017 | DURHAM | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 19, 2017 | (GJT)WALKER ARPT | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 8, 2016 | WHITEWATER | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 7, 2016 | CLIFTON | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 7, 2016 | FRUITVALE | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 7, 2016 | GRAND JCT | 0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Mesa County
- Thunderstorm Wind 160
- Flash Flood 70
- Hail 62
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Heavy rainfall resulted in street flooding and some damage to businesses in the downtown area of Fruita. Exactly an inch of rain fell within 45 minutes at one location. Radar estimated up to 1.5 inches of rainfall at other locations in Fruita.
Heavy rainfall resulted in minor flooding in many areas within the Grand Junction metropolitan area. Street flooding occurred along North Avenue between 4th and 7th Streets where a manhole cover was blown out, along 7th Street between North Avenue and Orchard Avenue, and on Patterson Road between 12th and 15th Streets. Flood waters also seeped into the Doubletree Hotel where some water damage occurred.
Runoff from heavy rain caused water about 2 inches deep to run across Highway 65 in 4 different places between the Collbran turnoff and Interstate 70. A few boulders ranging in size from softballs to volleyballs, some accompanied by sludge, fell onto the highway. An estimated wind gust of 55 mph also occurred in the town of Mesa.|
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many heavy rain events are on record in Mesa County, Colorado?
69 heavy rain events are recorded in Mesa County between 1998 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest heavy rain recorded in Mesa County?
The strongest heavy rain on record in Mesa County measured 0.
Where does the heavy rain data for Mesa 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
“Heavy Rain in Mesa County, Colorado.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/colorado/mesa-county/heavy-rain/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.