NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Burlington, CO
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Burlington, Colorado since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 139 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 139
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Burlington
The strongest of the 139 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on July 7, 1993; its path came within 7 miles. Of the 139, 14 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 44. The most recent tornado was on September 16, 2025. Burlington has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 65% of the 157 Colorado cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 213 times since 1962, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Burlington has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 157 Colorado cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Burlington
By decade
- 2020s17
- 2010s20
- 2000s15
- 1990s47(1 EF3+)
- 1980s14
- 1970s5
- 1960s13
- 1950s8
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 7, 1993 | F3 | 7 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Aug 8, 2023 | EF2 | 17 mi | 5.29 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 31, 2000 | F2 | 19 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 5, 1994 | F2 | 12 mi | 6.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 7, 1993 | F2 | 11 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 30, 1988 | F2 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 1975 | F2 | 23 mi | 12.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 1973 | F2 | 16 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 22, 1957 | F2 | 3 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 6, 1952 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1952 | F2 | 22 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 11, 2023 | EF1 | 23 mi | 5.17 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 139, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Burlington
The Storm Prediction Center has 213 hail reports within 10 miles of Burlington since 1962, made on 116 separate days. Of these, 140 were 1 inch across or larger, and 27 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on June 9, 1971. The most recent report is from September 9, 2025. June has the most reports, 77.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Burlington
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Burlington, CO, in Burlington at 4,162 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 44°F and 17°F. July is the wettest at 3.4 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 19.3 inches over 38 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 53 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 158 nights a year. Snowfall averages 33.7 inches a year, most of it in February. That 19.3 inches is more than at 74 of the 91 Colorado stations used on this site (81%). Goodland, KS, 27 miles east, has its own station (Goodland, KS): 19.2 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 44 | 17 | 0.4 | 1 | 5.3 |
| Feb | 46 | 19 | 0.6 | 2 | 6.8 |
| Mar | 57 | 26 | 1.0 | 2 | 5.8 |
| Apr | 64 | 34 | 2.0 | 4 | 3.9 |
| May | 74 | 45 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.3 |
| Jun | 85 | 55 | 2.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 91 | 61 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 88 | 59 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 50 | 1.3 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 37 | 1.4 | 3 | 2.7 |
| Nov | 54 | 26 | 0.5 | 2 | 3.7 |
| Dec | 44 | 18 | 0.5 | 1 | 5.2 |
| Year | 66 | 37 | 19.3 | 38 | 33.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Burlington, CO (4,162 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Burlington
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 175 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Burlington: 158 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 flash floods, 7 floods and 1 heavy rain event. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $777,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 115 mph, on September 1, 2021. July has had the most flash floods, 3 of 9. Of the 144 Colorado cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 86 have had fewer than Burlington.
June 28, 2011: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Burlington — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “A severe microburst destroyed two airport hangars and damaged several aircraft inside. The only hangars destroyed were those oriented north-south.”
September 1, 2021: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Burlington — $170,000 damage.
NWS: “Intense straight line winds due to the microburst first occurred at 8:12 PM MDT near the Burlington airport. This began an area of intermittent damage consistent with wind speeds in the 100-115 mph range.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Kit Carson County, which includes Burlington, has been named in 7 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 4 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 1 coastal storm, 1 drought, 1 fire). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes, on August 25, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kit Carson County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes; Very Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.3 million a year, the 35th highest of 64 Colorado counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.5 million (24%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Burlington
- Goodland, KS27 mi
- Wray, CO52 mi
- Yuma, CO64 mi
- Colby, KS65 mi
- Leoti, KS72 mi
- Akron, CO75 mi
- Oakley, KS77 mi
- Limon, CO77 mi
- Lamar, CO87 mi
- Holyoke, CO88 mi
- Imperial, NE90 mi
- Scott City, KS91 mi
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