NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cortez, 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 Cortez, Colorado since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 3 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 3
- 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 Cortez
The strongest of the 3 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on April 25, 1985; its path came within 1 mile. The most recent tornado was on July 18, 2011. Of the 157 Colorado cities on this site, 82% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Cortez. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 8 times since 1992, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 157 Colorado cities, 73% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Cortez.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Cortez
By decade
- 2010s1
- 1980s1
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 25, 1985 | F2 | 1 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 5, 1970 | F1 | 12 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 18, 2011 | EF0 | 10 mi | 0.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 3 of 3, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cortez
The Storm Prediction Center has 8 hail reports within 10 miles of Cortez since 1992, made on 6 separate days. All were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), fell on May 22, 1992. The most recent report is from June 6, 2020.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cortez
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cortez, CO, in Cortez at 6,167 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 57°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 17°F. September is the wettest at 1.5 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 12.0 inches over 35 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 42 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 168 nights a year. Snowfall averages 33.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 12.0 inches is more than at 16 of the 91 Colorado stations used on this site (18%). Mancos, 17 miles east, has its own station (Mancos 1SW, CO): 15.6 inches a year, 3.6 more than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 17 | 1.1 | 4 | 8.0 |
| Feb | 47 | 22 | 1.0 | 3 | 7.2 |
| Mar | 56 | 28 | 0.9 | 3 | 5.0 |
| Apr | 64 | 33 | 0.7 | 3 | 2.2 |
| May | 73 | 41 | 0.9 | 3 | 0.3 |
| Jun | 85 | 49 | 0.4 | 1 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 91 | 57 | 1.3 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 88 | 56 | 1.3 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 48 | 1.5 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 36 | 1.1 | 3 | 0.6 |
| Nov | 54 | 26 | 0.9 | 2 | 2.7 |
| Dec | 43 | 18 | 0.9 | 3 | 7.4 |
| Year | 66 | 36 | 12.0 | 35 | 33.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cortez, CO (6,167 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 Cortez
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 39 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cortez: 21 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 floods, 6 heavy rain events, 2 flash floods and 2 lightning strikes. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $672,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on July 17, 1997.
September 29, 2005: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Cortez — $250,000 damage.
October 3, 2013: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Cortez — $225,000 damage.
NWS: “Strong outflow winds from a thunderstorm combined with winds associated with a nearby cold front to produce extensive damage on several farms within about a two-mile radius of the location with the heaviest damage.”
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
Montezuma County, which includes Cortez, has been named in 8 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1970, 4 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 fires, 2 floods, 1 coastal storm). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 28, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Montezuma County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $12.4 million a year, the 31st highest of 64 Colorado counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $6.5 million (53%), 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 Cortez
- Dolores, CO14 mi
- Mancos, CO17 mi
- Hesperus, CO29 mi
- Montezuma Creek, UT38 mi
- Kirtland, NM42 mi
- Shiprock, NM43 mi
- Durango, CO44 mi
- Flora Vista, NM46 mi
- Fruitland, NM48 mi
- Blanding, UT49 mi
- Aztec, NM50 mi
- Farmington, NM53 mi
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