Colorado, 2001

Damaging Wind in Colorado, May 24, 2001

May 24, 2001 · NWS GJT · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A microburst struck the Delta City power plant and lifted roof panels off the cooling tower building. The roof panels were carried about 300 yards to the south where they fell on numerous vehicles resulting in damage.

Where it happened

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$20,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS GJT wrote it up.

A microburst struck the Delta City power plant and lifted roof panels off the cooling tower building. The roof panels were carried about 300 yards to the south where they fell on numerous vehicles resulting in damage.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Grand Junction, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 24, 12:54 PM MST, 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 24, 12:54 PM MST, 51 minutes before
WESTERN COLORADO & EASTERN UTAH AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
154 PM MDT THU MAY 24 2001

SYNOPSIS...AFTERNOON HEATING PRODUCING SCATTERD CUMULUS ACROSS CWFA
THIS AFTN. HOWEVER...WEAK UPWARD FORCING AND MID LEVEL WARMING WILL
INHIBIT CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THIS EVENING. EXPECT CU FIELD
TO ONCE AGAIN DECREASE AFTER SUNSET...LEAVING FOR TRANQUIL OVERNIGHT
PERIOD. LOCALLY BREEZY NW SFC WIND WILL ALSO DIMINISH AROUND SUNSET.

FORECAST...PACIFIC MOISTURE PROGRESSING OVERTOP OF UPPER LEVEL RIDGE
WILL BEGIN TO AFFECT THE CWFA BEGINNING FRIDAY. RIDGE AXIS WILL
REMAIN TO WEST THROUGH SATURDAY...THUS NORTHWEST FLOW WILL ALLOW
WEAK DISTURBANCES TO INTERACT WITH THE MOISTURE INCREASE...CREATING
THE THREAT OF LATE AFTN ISOLD MTN CONVECTION...WITH P/C CONDITIONS
OVER THE VALLEYS. RELATIVELY DRY LOW LEVELS WILL RESULT IN PRIMARILY
WIND POTENTIAL WITH ANY AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT.
TEMPERATURES WILL CONTINUE TO RUN 5-10F DEG ABOVE NORMAL THROUGH
SATURDAY.

EXTENDED...RIDGE AXIS FINALLY BEGINS TO BREAK-DOWN AND TRANSITION
EAST ON SUNDAY. SOUTHWEST FLOW WILL DEVELOP AND DRY THE MID LEVELS
OUT FOR A BRIEF PERIOD. AVN/MRF INDICATES S/W APPROACHING DESERT SW.
AS A RESULT...THE POTENTIAL FOR WINDY CONDITIONS WILL EXIST FOR THE
CWFA SUNDAY AFTERNOON. GRADUAL COOLING TREND EXPECTED THROUGH THE
MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK AS PACIFIC TROUGH SWINGS THROUGH. MRF STILL
TRYING TO PHASE NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN ENERGY TO CREATE SLOW MOVING
SYSTEM ACROSS THE CWFA BY MIDWEEK. GENERAL TREND OF OTHER MODELS IS
TO WEAKEN SOUTHERN ENERGY AND PHASE WITH NORTHERN BRANCH LEADING TO
UNSETTLED WEATHER...BUT NOTHING OVERLY SIGNIFICANT. AM STILL INCLINED
TO LEAN TOWARD THE LATTER SOLUTION AND ISSUE BROAD POPS FOR MONDAY
THROUGH WEDNESDAY. DRIER WEATHER IN NORTHWEST FLOW ANTICIPATED FOR
THURSDAY.

NADLER.83/JONES.24

.GJT...NONE.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Delta

When
May 24, 1:45 PM MST to 1:48 PM MST
Where
Delta County, Delta
Property damage
$20,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
38.861, -107.863 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Colorado in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, May 2001

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5245021.