Drought in Colorado, March 1 to 31, 2003

Name: Drought in Colorado, March 1 to 31, 2003
Start: 2003-03-01T00:00
End: 2003-03-31T23:59
Location: Colorado

March 1 to 31, 2003 · NWS GJT · 21 events in 21 counties and zones

Despite many significant snowfall events in the mountains and some northern valleys of western Colorado, extreme drought conditions persisted throughout western Colorado. Please see the April 2003 Storm Data publication for a continuation of this drought saga.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 21 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 21

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.

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 Feb 28, 9:45 PM MST, 2 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 28, 9:45 PM MST, 2 hours 15 minutes before

WESTERN COLORADO & EASTERN UTAH AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
945 PM MST FRI FEB 28 2003

BROAD TROUGH REMAINS OVER THE WESTERN CONUS THIS EVENING. WEAK
VORTICITY LOBE EXTENDING FROM SOUTHWEST WYOMING INTO CENTRAL UTAH
WILL CONTINUE THE CHANCE OF ISOLATED SNOW SHOWERS OVERNIGHT WITH A
LIGHT WESTERLY FLOW ADDING A LITTLE OROGRAPHIC COMPONENT. HAVE
EXPANDED AREAL COVERAGE OF ISOLATED SHOWERS WITH EVENING UPDATE.
NEXT WAVE IS CURRENTLY DIVING SOUTH ACROSS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST.
HIGHLY AMPLIFIED TROUGH RIDGE PATTERN OVER THE EASTERN PACIFIC SHOULD
KEEP THIS WAVE DIVING INTO THE FAR SOUTHWEST STATES AS THE 00Z ETA
SHOWS. LOOKS LIKE IT WILL BE A DISORGANIZED SYSTEM. NO MAJOR FOCUS TO
KEY ON ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA AND OROGRAPHICS LOOK WEAK. TAL

.GJT...NONE.

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 28, 5:36 AM MST, 18 hours 24 minutes before

COZ001>014-017>023-UTZ022>025-027>029-011230-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
536 AM MST FRI FEB 28 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN COLORADO AND FOR
EASTERN UTAH

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT...

WINTER STORM WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT TODAY FOR THE MOUNTAINS OF
SOUTHWEST COLORADO AND SOUTHEAST UTAH. SNOW WILL TAPER OFF THIS
MORNING...THOUGH SNOW SHOWERS WILL REDEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON.
SNOW WILL AFFECT THE CENTRAL VALLEYS AND SOUTHWEST HIGH VALLEYS
THIS MORNING...WITH ADDITIONAL SNOWFALL. ICY AND SNOW PACKED ROADS
WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE PRIMARY THREAT TO MOTORISTS TODAY. DUE TO
THE RECENT SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL IN THE HIGH COUNTRY...AN ELEVATED
AVALANCHE THREAT WILL EXIST.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY...

ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM...SIMILAR TO THIS PAST STORM...WILL AFFECT THE
REGION SATURDAY WITH MORE SNOW. THEREAFTER...WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL
IMPROVE UNTIL A STORM APPROACHES TUESDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY AND TONIGHT.

DJN

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

21 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Lower Yampa River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Lower Yampa River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 40.066, -108.109 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Animas River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Animas River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 37.287, -107.843 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Central Colorado River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Central Colorado River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 39.481, -107.172 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Central Gunnison and Uncompahgre River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Central Gunnison and Uncompahgre River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 38.737, -107.907 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Central Yampa River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Central Yampa River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 40.361, -107.805 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Debeque to Silt Corridor

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Debeque to Silt Corridor forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 39.308, -108.185 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Elkhead and Park Mountains

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Elkhead and Park Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 40.552, -107.599 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Flattop Mountains

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Flattop Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 40.062, -107.603 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Four Corners / Upper Dolores River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Four Corners / Upper Dolores River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 37.698, -108.507 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Gore and Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Gore and Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 39.481, -107.172 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Grand and Battlement Mesas

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Grand and Battlement Mesas forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 39.159, -108.078 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Grand Valley

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Grand Valley forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 39.308, -108.185 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Northwestern San Juan Mountains

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Northwestern San Juan Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 38.210, -107.755 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Paradox Valley / Lower Dolores River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Paradox Valley / Lower Dolores River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 38.294, -108.414 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Roan and Tavaputs Plateaus

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Roan and Tavaputs Plateaus forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 39.532, -108.196 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, San Juan River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: San Juan River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 37.194, -107.048 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Southwestern San Juan Mountains

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Southwestern San Juan Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 37.594, -107.912 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Uncompahgre Plateau and Dallas Divide

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Uncompahgre Plateau and Dallas Divide forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 38.488, -108.155 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Upper Gunnison River Valley

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Upper Gunnison River Valley forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 38.535, -107.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Upper Yampa River Basin

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: Upper Yampa River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 40.485, -106.991 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, West Elk and Sawatch Mountains

When: March 1, 12:00 AM MST to March 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where: West Elk and Sawatch Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 38.643, -107.721 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Drought: A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Colorado in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Colorado, March 2003

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: 5353072, 5353073, 5353074, 5353075, 5353076, 5353077, 5353639, 5353640, 5353641, 5353642, 5353643, 5353644, 5353645, 5353646, 5353647, 5353648, 5353649, 5353650, 5353651, 5353652, 5353653.