NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Watkins, 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 Watkins, Colorado since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 339 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 339
- 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 Watkins
The highest rating among the 339 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on June 15, 1988, came within 17 miles. Of the 339, 22 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 110 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 137. The most recent tornado was on July 14, 2025. Watkins has more tornadoes within 25 miles than any other of the 157 Colorado cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 131 times since 1977, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Watkins has more hail reports within 10 miles than 54% of the 157 Colorado cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Watkins
By decade
- 2020s21
- 2010s42
- 2000s47
- 1990s89
- 1980s87(2 EF3+)
- 1970s27(1 EF3+)
- 1960s20
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 15, 1988 | F3 | 17 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jun 12, 1982 | F3 | 6 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 1975 | F3 | 7 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2025 | EF2 | 11 mi | 4.44 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2025 | EF2 | 7 mi | 4.34 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2025 | EF2 | 12 mi | 0.94 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 13, 1996 | F2 | 12 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 15, 1988 | F2 | 17 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 2, 1987 | F2 | 11 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1987 | F2 | 2 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 8, 1986 | F2 | 6 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 8, 1986 | F2 | 13 mi | 1.1 mi | 0 / 6 |
The strongest 12 of 339, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Watkins
The Storm Prediction Center has 131 hail reports within 10 miles of Watkins since 1977, made on 81 separate days. Of these, 91 were 1 inch across or larger, and 9 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on July 13, 2011. The most recent report is from May 18, 2025. June has the most reports, 56.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Watkins
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Denver International Airport, CO, 6 miles northwest of Watkins at 5,414 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 60°F; December is the coolest, at 44°F and 18°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 46 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 156 nights a year. That 14.6 inches is more than at 33 of the 91 Colorado stations used on this site (36%). Aurora, 11 miles southwest, has its own station (Denver-Stapleton, CO): 15.4 inches a year, 0.8 more than here, and the same July average high, 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 19 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Feb | 46 | 20 | 0.4 | 2 |
| Mar | 56 | 28 | 0.9 | 3 |
| Apr | 62 | 34 | 1.7 | 4 |
| May | 71 | 44 | 2.2 | 5 |
| Jun | 83 | 53 | 1.9 | 4 |
| Jul | 90 | 60 | 2.1 | 4 |
| Aug | 88 | 58 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Sep | 80 | 50 | 1.4 | 3 |
| Oct | 65 | 37 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Nov | 53 | 26 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Dec | 44 | 18 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Year | 65 | 37 | 14.6 | 35 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Denver International Airport, CO (5,414 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 Watkins
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 78 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Watkins: 68 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 flash floods, 2 floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $165,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 79 mph, on July 22, 2019. Of the 144 Colorado cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 68 have had fewer than Watkins.
June 21, 2023: flash flood 1 mile from the centre of Watkins — 1 killed, $50,000 damage.
NWS: “Water rescues conducted between North Watkins Road near East 6th Ave south of Watkins. Occupant in one of the vehicles drowned.”
June 29, 2011: lightning strike 8 miles from the centre of Watkins — 2 injured.
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
Adams County, which includes Watkins, has been named in 12 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 7 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 coastal storm). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 28, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Adams County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for hail and lightning; Relatively High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $130.9 million a year, the 5th highest of 64 Colorado counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $44.5 million (34%), is from hail.
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 Watkins
- Bennett, CO9 mi
- Aurora, CO11 mi
- Strasburg, CO16 mi
- Commerce City, CO17 mi
- Denver, CO17 mi
- Brighton, CO17 mi
- Henderson, CO17 mi
- Greenwood Village, CO17 mi
- Parker, CO18 mi
- Centennial, CO19 mi
- Englewood, CO21 mi
- Lone Tree, CO21 mi
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