Routt County, Colorado severe weather history spans 101 recorded events between 1976 and 2024. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 26.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,879 nationally and #40 in Colorado.
101
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$303K
Property damage
The record
What the Routt County, Colorado severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Routt County, Colorado severe weather history averages 2.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 55 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 7 events fall before 1990 and 94 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 $116K 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 Routt County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 27 | 0 | $116K | 75 | 1976–2024 |
| Wildfire | 21 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2003 |
| Hail | 19 | 0 | $105K | 2.75 | 1988–2014 |
| Flood | 16 | 0 | $35K | 0 | 2001–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 8 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2003–2013 |
| Tornado | 3 | 0 | $3K | F1 | 1980–2018 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2023 |
| Debris Flow | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2023 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $40K | 0 | 2003–2009 |
| Flash Flood | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1998 |
Decade by decade
Routt 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980-05-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-06-24 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-06-15 | 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
Snowmelt runoff caused some streams and creeks to exceed bankfull. Culverts were overwhelmed in areas and portions of roads were damaged. In some cases, minor flooding and road damage occurred due to snowmelt water that cascaded off slopes above roads. Water 6 to 8 inches deep flowed across some roads. The force of the water caused a section of road between the Elk River Guest Ranch and Vista Verde Guest Ranch to slough off. The damaged road section was about 20 feet wide and plunged 12 to 14 feet down.
A severe thunderstorm moved through the Hayden area on the evening of the 21st, bringing multiple severe threats including strong to severe winds. The peak gust recorded at KHDN AWOS at Hayden-Yampa Valley Airport was only 48 mph, but there were multiple reports of damage in Hayden proper. This included downed trees and limbs. Reports from local Law Enforcement indicated a tree down, blocking Maple Street. Another downed tree was reported to have crushed a parked car.
Rapid snowmelt resulted in Dry Creek, which runs underneath S Popular Street, coming out of its banks. As a result, S Popular Street near Harvest Drive was closed due to flooding. Flood waters did not recede for several days.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
25,084
Population (ACS)
$855K
Median home value
6
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 |
| Jun 19, 2002 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| Jul 27, 1984 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, MUDSLIDES, LANDSLIDES & FLOODING | DR |
| Jan 29, 1977 | Drought | DROUGHT | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Routt County, Colorado?
101 events are on record between 1976 and 2024, causing 0 direct deaths and $303K in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Routt County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 27 recorded events — 26.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Routt 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 Routt County?
6 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Routt County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Routt County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Routt County as very low risk, placing it in the 33 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Routt 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
- Rio Grande County 35
- Saguache County 64
- Rio Blanco County 172
- San Juan County 17
- Pueblo County 954
- San Miguel County 97
Cite this page
“Routt County, Colorado.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/colorado/routt-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.