Colorado
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Mesa
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Grand Junction
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July 31, 2020
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Wildfire
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$38,398,900.00
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$34,000,000.00
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"The Pine Gulch Fire was started by a lightning strike on July 31, 2020, approximately 18 miles north of Grand Junction, Colorado. Initial Attack resources were unable to corral this remote wildfire as it spread rapidly through grass, sage, pinyon juniper and fir. The combination of drought-stressed vegetation, unseasonably hot weather and steep terrain led to weeks of active burning. Smoke columns were often visible from Grand Junction and the surrounding area as the wildfire exhibited extreme fire behavior. During the night of August 18, the fire grew quickly due to thunderstorm winds up to 40 mph for a three to four hour period. As a result, the fire increased by more than 30,000 acres that night.
As of August 27, 2020 the Pine Gulch Fire became the largest wildfire in Colorado State history, surpassing the Hayman Fire that burned near Colorado Springs in the summer of 2002." - InciWeb
The Pine Gulch Fire is now the third-largest wildfire in Colorado history, as it was surpassed by the East Troublesome and Cameron Peak Fires later in 2020.
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Colorado
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Grand, Larimer
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Kremmling, Estes Park, Grand Lake, Granby
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October 14, 2020
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Wildfire
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$613,253,000.00
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$543,000,000.00
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The East Troublesome Fire is the second-largest wildfire in Colorado history as of 2020.
"The East Troublesome Fire was reported on the afternoon of October 14. The origination point was northeast of Kremmling in Grand County, Colo. on the Arapaho National Forest. The cause is still under investigation. Within three days, high winds and low humidity allowed the fire to spread to over 10,000 acres. The direction of fire spread threatened State Highway 125 and forced the closure of the road and mandatory evacuation of approximately 90 homes by October 17.
Between Oct. 20-23, the fire spread increased dramatically with 24-hour increases of around 18,000 to 87,000 acres during the four-day run. The peak fire spread of 87,093 acres occurred between late afternoon on Oct. 21 and the early afternoon of Oct. 22. The size of the fire exploded from 18,550 acres to 187,964 acres during this period. The fire crossed Highway 125 on the afternoon of Oct. 21 and spread eastward into the Rocky Mountain National Park on Oct. 22, crossing the Continental Divide and reaching the western edge of Estes Park on Oct. 23.
The fire was fueled by wide-spread drought, numerous dead and down beetle-killed trees, red flag weather conditions created by high winds and dry conditions, and poor humidity recovery overnight. The combination of these factors led to unprecedented, wind-driven, active fire behavior with rapid spread during the overnight hours. During this period the area north of US Highway 40 from near Granby and extending eastward to Grand Lake and Estes Park had over 7,000 structures threatened, and a population of over 35,000 placed under a mandatory evacuation.
A winter storm from Saturday, Oct. 24 through the morning of Oct. 26 brought very cold temperatures, precipitation in the form of snow and lighter winds, resulting in a dramatic drop in fire behavior with smoldering and reduced fire spread on both sides of the Continental Divide. Over this 3-day period, fire growth fell to a total of around 4,500 acres for a total of 192,457 acres. From that point forward, fire activity remained minimal with little change in area and a final total acreage of 193,812. The fire was declared contained on Nov. 30, 2020." - InciWeb
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Colorado
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Larimer, Jackson
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Rustic, Estes Park, Red Feather Lakes
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August 13, 2020
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Wildfire
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$151,337,000.00
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$134,000,000.00
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The Cameron Peak Fire is the largest wildfire in Colorado history as of 2020. It is also the third most destructive wildfire in Colorado history, in terms of homes destroyed, behind the Black Forest Fire in 2013 and the Marshall Fire in 2021.
"The Cameron Peak Fire was reported on Thursday, August 13 at approximately 1:48 PM. The fire was burning in steep, rugged terrain, approximately 25 miles east of Walden and 15 miles southwest of Red Feather Lakes near Cameron Pass.
The fire burned through an area of 208,913 acres on the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests in Larimer and Jackson Counties and Rocky Mountain National Park.
The cause of the wildfire remains under investigation. Large scale and long duration evacuations took place throughout the fire.
During the time the Cameron Peak Fire was burning, there was another fire (East Troublesome) burning simultaneously to the west of the Cameron Peak Fire, on the west side of the Continental Divide. On October 22, the East Troublesome Fire spotted over the Continental Divide, and created what became known as the “Thompson Zone” of the East Troublesome Fire.
On the Cameron Peak Fire, extreme temperatures, low humidity, rough terrain and gusty winds reaching over 70 miles per hour were just some of the elements that contributed to extreme fire behavior and rapid rates of spread. A major contributing factor to the large fire growth was the tremendous amount of beetle kill trees and the drought-stricken Ponderosa Pine, Engelmann Spruce and mixed conifer stands available as fuel.
After 62 days of burning, on October 14, the Cameron Peak Fire became the largest recorded wildfire in Colorado's history, surpassing the Pine Gulch Fire that burned near Grand Junction in 2020.
The Cameron Peak Fire was 100% contained as of December 2, 2020." - InciWeb
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Colorado
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Garfield
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Glenwood Springs
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August 10, 2020
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Wildfire
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"The Grizzly Creek Fire (also called the 120 Fire) was a wildfire that burned 32,631 acres (13,205 ha) in Glenwood Canyon in Colorado. The fire first ignited on August 10, 2020 and was declared 100% contained on December 18, 2020. The Grizzly Creek fire's proximity to Interstate 70 resulted in a 13-day closure of the interstate. It threatened the Shoshone Generating Station and resulted in the evacuation of residences in the area, as well as closure of recreational land in portions of White River National Forest. The fire was human caused with the exact cause under investigation." - Wikipedia
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Colorado, Wyoming
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Carbon, Albany, Jackson
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Laramie
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September 17, 2020
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Wildfire
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$39,076,500.00
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$34,599,900.00
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"The Mullen Fire is a wildfire that burned over 176,878 acres (71,580 ha), 28 miles (45 km) west of Laramie, Wyoming. The fire started on September 17, 2020 in the Savage Run Wilderness of Carbon County, and spread to Albany County. On September 30, it spread into Jackson County, Colorado. The cause is still under investigation. It burned close to the Rob Roy Reservoir, and Platte River Wilderness. On October 15, 2020, the fire was estimated to span 25 miles north to south, and 23 miles east to west." - Wikipedia
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Colorado, Wyoming
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March 13, 2021
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Winter Storm
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$80,902,700.00
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$75,000,000.00
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Winter Storm Xylia. "Cheyenne, Wyoming, was buried by 30.8 inches of snow from March 13-14. According to the National Weather Service, 22.7 inches of snow fell on March 14, alone, which smashed the city's all-time single-day snow record which was set on Nov. 20, 1979 (19.8 inches). That snowstorm total was more than half of Cheyenne's average annual snowfall (60.3 inches). The National Weather Service said snowdrifts in southeast Wyoming were 5 to 10 feet high in some areas. Denver had its fourth-heaviest snowstorm on record after it piled up 27.1 inches. It was their heaviest since the March 2003 snowstorm." - The Weather Channel
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Colorado
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Denver, Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Douglas, Gilpin, Jefferson, Larimer, Weld
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March 23, 2016
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Winter Storm, High Wind
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"A powerful blizzard developed across the Front Range of Colorado late Tuesday, March 22, and continued through much of Wednesday, March 23, 2016. The storm tracked east/southeast across Utah Tuesday afternoon and evening, and then into Southeast Colorado by Wednesday morning. The storm rapidly intensified as the storm reached eastern Colorado, producing extremely heavy and intense snowfall with snowfall rates exceeding 3 inches per hour at times. In addition to heavy snow, strong winds gusting in excess of 50 mph east of Interstate 25 produced widespread blizzard conditions and zero visibilities. Further south across southern Colorado, peak wind gusts were between 70-80 mph." - National Weather Service
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Colorado, Utah
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La Plata, Garfield, Routt, Mesa, Grand
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January 09, 2017
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Winter Storm
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"Freezing rain was first detected in the Steamboat Springs area around 2 in the morning, where over 4600 customers went without power due to a downed feeder line west of Clark likely caused by a coating of ice on the power lines due to freezing rain. Then between 4 am and 6 am, freezing rain occurred in La Plata County in southwest Colorado as well as the Grand Valley through Glenwood Canyon in west-central Colorado. This resulted in icy roads, numerous slide offs and accidents and major highways to be closed for the majority of the day due to accidents and cleanup activities, including Interstate 70 from Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs and Highway 160 from Durango to Hesperus Hill. Impacts were felt not only with the morning commute, but also at dispatch centers and hospitals that were overwhelmed. Emergency rooms at various hospitals throughout the Grand Valley, including Grand Junction, exceeded their daily admittance records with over 200 people treated for broken bones and other blunt force injuries due to the icy surfaces. Schools were also closed throughout the Grand Valley and many businesses were negatively impacted by either not opening, opening late or the lack of customers. This was the first day back from winter break for Mesa County schools, which in addition to the icy road impacts, crippled transportation. The Grand Junction Regional Airport also closed for several hours due to the ice, resulting in a few diverted flights." - National Weather Service
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Colorado
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Denver
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Denver
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April 23, 1885
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Winter Storm
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23" of snow. "This is by far the biggest April snowstorm in Denver history, according to Weather 5280. Even more notable? It happened during an April where 32" fell on the city, which is almost a record for the entire month." - 9News
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Colorado
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Denver
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Denver
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October 20, 1906
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Winter Storm
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