NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Colorado City, TX
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Colorado City, Texas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1886. Since 1950, 127 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 127
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Colorado City
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Colorado City; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1886, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 29 miles away. Of the 753 Texas cities on this site, 87% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Colorado City. The highest rating among the 127 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 24, 1968, came within 21 miles. Of the 127, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 49 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 57. The most recent tornado was on May 1, 2022. Colorado City has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 66% of the 753 Texas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 143 times since 1961, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Colorado City has more hail reports within 10 miles than 77% of the 753 Texas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Colorado City
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormAug 21 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Colorado City: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Colorado City
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s10
- 2000s36
- 1990s18
- 1980s31
- 1970s8
- 1960s19(3 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 24, 1968 | F3 | 23 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1968 | F3 | 24 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1968 | F3 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 2022 | EF2 | 21 mi | 0.35 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 2014 | EF2 | 20 mi | 1.01 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 2005 | F2 | 24 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 11, 2004 | F2 | 18 mi | 10.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 27, 1982 | F2 | 12 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 1965 | F2 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 26, 1963 | F2 | 25 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 2015 | EF1 | 13 mi | 0.16 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 23, 2008 | EF1 | 23 mi | 1.74 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 127, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Colorado City
The Storm Prediction Center has 143 hail reports within 10 miles of Colorado City since 1961, made on 89 separate days. Of these, 115 were 1 inch across or larger, and 29 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on June 11, 1999. The most recent report is from June 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 71.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Colorado City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Colorado City, TX, 5 miles northeast of Colorado City at 2,110 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 97°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 58°F and 28°F. June is the wettest at 3.1 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.9 inches; the year adds up to 22.1 inches over 35 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 112 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 76 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.6 inches a year, most of it in November. That 22.1 inches is more than at 55 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (18%). Snyder, 27 miles north, has its own station (Snyder, TX): 22.0 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 96°F against 97°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58 | 28 | 0.9 | 2 | 0.2 |
| Feb | 62 | 31 | 1.3 | 2 | 0.1 |
| Mar | 70 | 40 | 1.7 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 81 | 47 | 1.5 | 3 | 0.0 |
| May | 87 | 59 | 2.2 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 93 | 67 | 3.1 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 97 | 71 | 2.0 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 96 | 69 | 3.0 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 88 | 62 | 1.9 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 79 | 50 | 2.3 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 67 | 38 | 1.2 | 4 | 1.2 |
| Dec | 59 | 29 | 1.0 | 2 | 0.1 |
| Year | 78 | 49 | 22.1 | 35 | 1.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Colorado City, TX (2,110 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 Colorado City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 88 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Colorado City: 59 thunderstorm wind reports, 26 flash floods, 2 floods and 1 heavy rain event. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $7.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on August 10, 2023. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 518 have had fewer than Colorado City.
June 30, 2020: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Colorado City — $7.0 million damage.
NWS: “A thunderstorm moved across Mitchell County and produced straight-line wind damage about three miles east of Colorado City. There were five downed powerline poles along the south frontage road of I-20 between mile markers 221 and 222.”
August 14, 2005: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Colorado City — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “The public reported flash flooding in the city of Midland, along the Loop 250 service road. An off-duty National Weather Service meteorologist reported that a car was stranded in high water at the intersection of Bluebird and Midkiff Streets in Midland.”
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
Mitchell County, which includes Colorado City, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1993, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 fires, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, on February 19, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Mitchell 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 hurricanes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $5.8 million a year, the 189th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.8 million (31%), 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 Colorado City
- Snyder, TX27 mi
- Big Spring, TX32 mi
- Sweetwater, TX32 mi
- Merkel, TX54 mi
- Stanton, TX55 mi
- Hamlin, TX58 mi
- Tuscola, TX61 mi
- Lamesa, TX63 mi
- Winters, TX65 mi
- Dyess Afb, TX65 mi
- Post, TX66 mi
- Anson, TX66 mi
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