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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Utah
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Salt Lake
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February 06, 2021
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Avalanche
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4
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"On the morning of February 6, 2021, two different groups (eight people total) went to ski in the Wilson Glades area of Alexander Basin on the north side of Wilson Peak in Millcreek Canyon. Both groups were ascending when the avalanche happened. Group A was near the top, and Group B was below. This avalanche was likely human triggered, but it cannot be determined by whom. Six people were caught and fully buried. Two of them survived, and four did not." - Utah Avalanche Center
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Utah
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Salt Lake
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February 17, 2021
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Avalanche, Winter Storm
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A potent storm cycle delivered much-needed snow to northern Utah in mid-February. From February 11-18, northern Utah received 3-6” of snow-water equivalent from the Bear River Range near Logan south to the Cottonwood Canyons in the Central Wasatch. While not a quite drought-breaking storm, snow-water equivalent increased in the Bear, Provo, Six Creeks and Weber River basins by 15-20% relative to average during February. During this time period, Alta Ski Area received 103” of snow, including 65” over the last 4 days of the storm cycle. Utah Highway 210 in Little Cottonwood Canyon was closed for nearly 3 days due to extreme avalanche danger and 34 avalanches crossed the road. Avalanches occurred on many avalanche paths that had not run since 1984 and one avalanche pushed a plow truck off Highway 210.
"Feb 17: Several large slide paths in Little Cottonwood reach the highway, burying the road with debris up to 15' in places." - Utah Avalanche Center
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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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Utah
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Washington, Kane
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Springdale
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June 29, 2021
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Flood
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"A flash flood Tuesday afternoon forced the closure of Zion National Park, sending flood waters and mud through both the south entrance in Springdale and the east entrance in Kane County. State Route 9 was closed at Rockville as heavy flooding left more than a foot of mud down Zion Park Boulevard from the park entrance to Blondie’s Diner." - St. George News
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Colorado
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Larimer
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Rustic
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July 20, 2021
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Flood, Landslide
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3
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In Poudre Canyon, "flooding occurred around the burn scar of the Cameron Peak Fire, the largest recorded fire in [Colorado] history. More than 30 miles of Colorado 14, between Rustic and the intersection with Colorado 287, closed and was evacuated Tuesday after an inch of rain caused debris from the burn scar to flow downstream and flood the river." - CPR News
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Colorado
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Garfield
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Glenwood Springs
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July 29, 2021
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Landslide
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"Torrential rain fell and the charred land stripped of vegetation gave way, sending a rush of mud and boulders tumbling down steep canyon walls and onto highway I-70 near Glenwood Springs. Mudslides have become more frequent and intense since the Grizzly Creek Fire scorched about 50 square miles (130 square kilometers) in the summer of 2020." - PBS News Hour
CBS Images
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Utah
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Emery
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August 02, 2021
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Flood
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1
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"Flash flooding at an Emery County mine resulted in the death of at least one person when water and debris swept him six miles downstream." - KSL News Radio
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Colorado
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Denver, Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Jefferson, Weld
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October 12, 2021
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Drought
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In October, a pocket of extreme drought develops in northeast CO. This pocket expands and covers several counties in December.
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Colorado, Wyoming
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December 15, 2021
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High Wind
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A severe storm with hurricane-force gusts affected Colorado and Wyoming over the course of a few days. This storm also brought the first tornado ever reported in Minnesota during the month of December, according to NOAA data.
CO: "The National Weather Service office in Pueblo recorded a 107 mph wind gust in Lamar shortly before 9 a.m." - CBS Denver
WY: "A National Weather Service peak wind report released Sunday morning showed a 118 mph gust blasted Clark, a small community in the northern part of the state, north of Cody." - Deseret News
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