NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Carbondale, 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 Carbondale, Colorado since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 2 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 2
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Carbondale
The strongest of the 2 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on June 20, 1975; its path came within 11 miles. The most recent tornado was on May 29, 2021. Of the 157 Colorado cities on this site, 87% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Carbondale. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 6 times since 1999, with stones up to 1 inch (quarter size). Of the 157 Colorado cities, 75% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Carbondale.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Carbondale
By decade
- 2020s1
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 20, 1975 | F2 | 11 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 29, 2021 | Unrated | 24 mi | 0.65 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 2 of 2, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Carbondale
The Storm Prediction Center has 6 hail reports within 10 miles of Carbondale since 1999, made on 5 separate days. Of these, 3 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1 inch (quarter size), was reported on 3 days, most recently August 1, 2023. The most recent report is from August 1, 2023.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Carbondale
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Glenwood Spgs #2, CO, 14 miles northwest of Carbondale at 5,895 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 53°F; January is the coolest, at 36°F and 12°F. May is the wettest at 1.7 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 1.0 inches; the year adds up to 15.7 inches over 45 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 39 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 174 nights a year. Snowfall averages 38.9 inches a year, most of it in January. That 15.7 inches is more than at 47 of the 91 Colorado stations used on this site (52%). Basalt, 12 miles east, has its own station (Aspen Pitkin Co Airport, CO): 14.8 inches a year, 0.9 less than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36 | 12 | 1.1 | 4 | 13.7 |
| Feb | 42 | 19 | 1.2 | 4 | 6.3 |
| Mar | 53 | 26 | 1.2 | 4 | 2.4 |
| Apr | 60 | 32 | 1.6 | 4 | 0.6 |
| May | 71 | 40 | 1.7 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 82 | 46 | 1.0 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 89 | 53 | 1.1 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 52 | 1.3 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 44 | 1.6 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 33 | 1.6 | 4 | 0.7 |
| Nov | 49 | 24 | 1.1 | 3 | 4.4 |
| Dec | 36 | 15 | 1.2 | 3 | 10.8 |
| Year | 62 | 33 | 15.7 | 45 | 38.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Glenwood Spgs #2, CO (5,895 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 Carbondale
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 38 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Carbondale: 14 flash floods, 11 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 heavy rain events and 4 floods. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $1.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on May 29, 2025. July has had the most flash floods, 6 of 14. Of the 144 Colorado cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 110 have had fewer than Carbondale.
May 29, 2023: flood 10 miles from the centre of Carbondale — 1 killed.
June 5, 2011: flood 4 miles from the centre of Carbondale — $1.8 million damage.
NWS: “The Colorado River experienced elevated flows due to snow melt runoff from June 5th to the end of the month. Flood advisories or warnings were in effect through most of this time, with only brief periods when the river fell just below bankfull.”
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
Pitkin County, which includes Carbondale, has been named in 6 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 3 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 1 coastal storm, 1 drought, 1 fire). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 28, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Pitkin County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $26.4 million a year, the 16th highest of 64 Colorado counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $12.5 million (48%), 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 Carbondale
- Basalt, CO12 mi
- Glenwood Springs, CO15 mi
- Snowmass Village, CO15 mi
- Aspen, CO22 mi
- Gypsum, CO26 mi
- Eagle, CO30 mi
- Crested Butte, CO35 mi
- Edwards, CO36 mi
- Paonia, CO38 mi
- Avon, CO41 mi
- Hotchkiss, CO46 mi
- Leadville, CO47 mi
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