Lightning struck a power substation in the early morning hours.
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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.
The episode as NWS GJT wrote it up.
Lightning struck a power substation in the early morning hours.
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 Aug 15, 3:04 AM MST, 1 hour 8 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 404 AM MDT SAT AUG 15 2009 .SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT... A VIGOROUS SHORTWAVE WAS MOVING EASTWARD ACROSS THE GREAT BASIN EARLY THIS MORNING DRIVING A WELL DELINEATED COLD FRONT AHEAD OF IT. THE FRONT EXTENDED FROM JUST NORTH OF A KRKS-KPUC-KMLF LINE AS OF 03Z. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS IN THE MOIST CONTINENTAL TROPICAL AIRMASS AHEAD OF THE FRONT TRIGGERED ALONG THE LEADING EDGE OF THE BAROCLINIC ZONE CONTINUED TO SWEEP OVER NORTHEAST UTAH. FARTHER EAST...A WEAK DISTURBANCE IN THE SOUTHWEST FLOW AHEAD OF THE FRONT CONTINUED TO SUSTAIN SHOWERS AND EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE CENTRAL AND NORTHERN MOUNTAINS EARLY THIS MORNING. MEANWHILE... DRYING WAS EVIDENT ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE CWFA IN WV IMAGERY. MODELS CONTINUED TO SHOW THE COLD FRONT SWEEPING INTO THE EASTERN UINTA BASIN THIS MORNING...PASSING THROUGH THE VERNAL AREA TOWARD NOON. QPF FIELDS FOR BOTH NAM AND GFS SEEMED TO INDICATE DRIER AIR AHEAD OF THE FRONT WILL ERODE EARLY MORNING CONVECTION CONFINING DEVELOPING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO THE LEADING EDGE OF THE FRONT THIS BEFORE NOON. HOWEVER...SHOWERS AND STORMS OVER THE CENTRAL AND NORTHERN MOUNTAINS...THOUGH FEWER...ARE LIKELY TO CONTINUE OVER THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL MOUNTAINS THROUGH SUNRISE THIS MORNING ON THE NOSE OF A 75KT JET STREAK MOVING THROUGH THE BASE OF THE TROF. THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL INCREASE THIS AFTERNOON AS THE TROF AXIS SHIFTS TO EASTERN UTAH DRIVING THE COLD FRONT ACROSS NORTHWEST COLORADO. DECENT FORCING PROVIDED BY JET DIVERGENCE...PVA...AND LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE COMBINED WITH MODERATE SPEED SHEAR WILL LIKELY BRING A FEW ORGANIZED STORMS NORTH OF THE I-70 CORRIDOR CAPABLE OF GENERATING STRONG OUTFLOW WINDS AND HAIL UP TO A HALF-INCH IN DIAMETER. THE TROF AXIS WILL CONTINUE EASTWARD AND THE ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT WILL PROCEED SOUTHWARD THIS EVENING. NVA AND DRYING ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE TROF WILL CAUSE STORMS TO DIMINISH ACROSS NORTHEAST UTAH EARLY IN THE EVENING. IN CONTRAST...THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS OF COLORADO ARE LIKELY TO REMAIN ACTIVE THIS EVENING. MEANWHILE...SOUTH OF THE I-70 CORRIDOR AIRMASS TOO DRY TO SUPPORT CONVECTION AND FRONT WILL PASS THROUGH UNEVENTFULLY. DRY AIR CONTINUES TO MOVE INTO THE REGION WITH ZONAL FLOW AND THEREFORE EXPECT SHOWERS TO END BY MIDNIGHT. THAT SAID...LEFT SLIGHT CHANCE OVER THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS TO ACCOUNT FOR ANY STRAGGLERS. COOL AND DRY CONDITIONS EXPECTED SUNDAY WITH THE COLD FRONT STALLED OVER THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS. HIGHS SOUTH OF THE FRONT WILL BE WARMER THAN YESTERDAY DUE TO DEEP MIXING ASSOCIATED WITH STRONG GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS AND FEWER CLOUDS. MEANWHILE...FRONTAL PASSAGE AND MOIST...CLOUDY CONDITIONS WILL INHIBIT HIGHS ACROSS THE NORTH. COOLER THAN NORMAL TEMPERATURES EXPECTED SUNDAY AS COOLER AIR SETTLES OVER THE AREA. .LONG TERM...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY... PREVIOUS FORECAST IN GOOD SHAPE AND MADE LITTLE CHANGES. A DRY NW FLOW CONTINUES THROUGH THURSDAY BEFORE A DRY RIDGE BUILDS IN FOR THE WEEKEND. THE LAST GASP DISTURBANCE OF THE PROGRESSING TROUGH PASSES WEDNESDAY NIGHT. THE ASSOCIATED COOL FRONT IS PROGGED TO BE DRY. RAISED WINDS FOR WED-WEDNESDAY NIGHT. && .AVIATION... SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FROM THE I-70 CORRIDOR NORTH THIS MORNING...INCREASING IN AREAL COVERAGE THIS AFTERNOON. THE STRONGEST STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF GENERATING BRIEF MVFR CIGS AND VSBY...ALONG WITH WIND GUSTS TO 35 MPH AND SMALL HAIL. ELSEWHERE...MVFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL...THOUGH STRONG SOUTHWEST WINDS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP DURING THE AFTERNOON AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT. WIND SPEEDS WILL RANGE FROM 15 TO 20 MPH SUSTAINED WITH GUSTS TO 30 MPH AT TIMES. SHOWERS ACROSS THE NORTH WILL DIMINISH OVERNIGHT BRINGING A RETURN TO VFR CONDITIONS REGION WIDE. && .FIRE WEATHER... SATURDAY A STORM SYSTEM AND ITS ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT WILL WORK ITS WAY INTO THE NORTHWEST FIRE ZONES OF THE REGION...THEN PASS THROUGH THE ENTIRE AREA BY EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL PRECEDE THE FRONT BUT FEEL THEIR MAY ONLY BE A BRIEF PERIOD WHERE WINDS AND RH WILL REACH CRITICAL CONCERNS. CLOUD COVER WILL INCREASE AS THE FRONT NEARS THE NORTHERN ZONES AND INSTABILITY LIKELY TO ALLOW SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS IN THAT AREA. .GJT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... .CO...NONE. .UT...NONE. SHORT TERM.....NL LONG TERM......EH+JOE AVIATION.......NL FIRE WEATHER...MC
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 545 AM MDT FRI AUG 14 2009 COZ001>014-017>023-UTZ022>025-027>029-151200- ANIMAS RIVER BASIN-ARCHES/GRAND FLAT-CANYONLANDS/NATURAL BRIDGES- CENTRAL COLORADO RIVER BASIN- CENTRAL GUNNISON AND UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER BASIN- CENTRAL YAMPA RIVER BASIN-DEBEQUE TO SILT CORRIDOR- EASTERN UINTA BASIN-EASTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS- ELKHEAD AND PARK MOUNTAINS-FLAT TOPS- FOUR CORNERS/UPPER DOLORES RIVER- GORE AND ELK MOUNTAINS/CENTRAL MOUNTAINS-GRAND AND BATTLEMENT MESAS- GRAND VALLEY-LA SAL AND ABAJO MOUNTAINS-LOWER YAMPA RIVER BASIN- NORTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-PARADOX VALLEY/LOWER DOLORES RIVER- ROAN AND TAVAPUTS PLATEAUS-SAN JUAN RIVER BASIN-SOUTHEAST UTAH- SOUTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-TAVAPUTS PLATEAU- UNCOMPAHGRE PLATEAU AND DALLAS DIVIDE-UPPER GUNNISON RIVER VALLEY- UPPER YAMPA RIVER BASIN-WEST ELK AND SAWATCH MOUNTAINS- 545 AM MDT FRI AUG 14 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN UTAH AND WESTERN COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS THE REGION THROUGHOUT THE DAY AND INTO THE EVENING. STRONGER STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF GENERATING BRIEF HEAVY RAIN...WINDS TO 35 MPH...SMALL HAIL AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY... ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP SUNDAY AFTERNOON... CONTINUING INTO THE EARLY EVENING. AFTER A PERIOD OF DRY WEATHER THROUGH MIDWEEK...A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPS AT THE END OF THE WEEK. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY OR TONIGHT. TGJT
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Lightning struck a power substation on the north side of Montrose during the early morning hours, causing minor damage This caused the electrical power to be down for nearly 1400 residences in northern Montrose County north of the town of Montrose for about 90 minutes.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, August 2009
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: 187809.