Flash flooding brought debris and mud down toward Stove Prairie from the High Park Fire burn area. The debris was washed off of Mt.
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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 BOU wrote it up.
Flash flooding brought debris and mud down toward Stove Prairie from the High Park Fire burn area. The debris was washed off of Mt. Ethel and spilled down toward the Stove Prairie area, which is 10 miles west of Bellvue. A trained weather spotter observed mud and debris flow around both sides of their home and a barn. One to one-and-one-half inches of rain fell over the burn area. Rist Canyon Road was closed because of the flooding; Ford Hill Road was also closed at Stove Prairie. The damage was confined to the roadways. In addition, lightning struck down and destroyed a large tree on the CSU Campus.
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 Denver/Boulder, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 5, 8:29 AM MST, 5 hours 21 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER/BOULDER CO 929 AM MDT FRI JUL 5 2013 .UPDATE... && .SHORT TERM...THE BROAD UPPER HIGH WHICH WAS OVER WESTERN GREAT BASIN YESTERDAY HAS SHIFTED EASTWARD AND WEAKENED TODAY ACROSS COLORADO. THIS HAS RESULTED IN THE FLOW ALOFT TO SHIFT MORE WESTERLY WHILE INCREASING MOISTURE LEVELS. THIS WILL AT LEAST PROVIDE MORE SHOWER MOVEMENT OFF THE FOOTHILLS AND ONTO THE PLAINS. INTEGRATED GPS PW VALUES HAVE INCREASED TO JUST OVER AN INCH THIS MORNING...WHICH IS ALMOST A HALF INCH RISE FROM YESTERDAY. ALREADY WE HAVE HAD ONE WEAK WAVE MOVE ACROSS THE FRONT RANGE WITH A FEW LIGHT RAIN SHOWERS. ANOTHER IMPULSE IS NOW OVER WESTERN COLORADO WHICH WILL MOVE EASTWARD OVER THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON. CONSIDERING ALL THE MOISTURE THOUGH...THE INSTABILITY IS STILL ONLY MARGINAL GIVEN THE DELAYED TEMPERATURE RISE WITH CLOUD COVER THIS AM. ACARS SOUNDINGS THIS MORNING SHOWING LOW LEVEL INVERSION AROUND 750MB WHILE 12Z SOUNDING AT GJT SHOWED CONTINUED WARMING ALOFT WHICH WOULD RESULT IN AFTERNOON CAPE VALUES ONLY UP TO AROUND 500J/KG OVER THE FRONT RANGE AND PLAINS. EXPECT BRIEF RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS WITH SHOWERS. NO SEVERE STORMS DUE TO LACK OF HIGHER INSTABILITY. THERE IS A CIRRUS SHIELD OVER EASTERN UTAH WHICH MAY PUT AN END TO SHOWERS LATER THIS AFTERNOON/EARLY EVENING. .AVIATION...STILL EXPECT SOME SHOWERS THIS AFTERNOON DUE TO INCREASED MOISTURE LEVELS. LACK OF INSTABILITY SO NOT SURE HOW MUCH TS WILL BE ABLE TO GENERATE BUT WILL GO WITH A TEMPO GROUP THROUGH LATE AFTERNOON. SURFACE WINDS EXPECTED TO GO LIGHT EAST AND NORTHEAST THIS AFTERNOON. && .HYDROLOGY...HIGH MOISTURE LEVELS WILL LEAD TO SCATTERED RAIN SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS BUT LOW FLASH FLOOD THREAT BECAUSE OF LOW INSTABILITY AND DECENT STORM MOTIONS FROM WEST TO EAST AT 10-15KT. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 305 AM MDT FRI JUL 5 2013/ SHORT TERM...BAND OF CLOUDS AND ISOLATED SHOWERS WILL ROTATE OFF THE MOUNTAINS THIS MORNING...ILL TIMED TO GENERATE PRECIPITATION ON THE PLAINS THOUGH THERE COULD BE A FEW SPRINKLES. BREAK BEHIND IT SHOULD FILL IN WITH DAYTIME HEATING. OVERALL A SIMILAR SCENARIO TO YESTERDAY ONLY WITH A LITTLE MORE MOISTURE...AGAIN MAINLY IN HIGHER LEVELS. SLIGHT WARMING ALOFT WILL MAKE IT HARD TO GET MUCH CAPE...AND THE CLOUD COVER MAY PREVENT CORRESPONDING WARMING AT THE SURFACE. SO ONCE AGAIN PLENTY OF CLOUDS BUT NOT NECESSARILY MUCH IN THE WAY OF RAIN. I MADE SOME MINOR ADJUSTMENTS FOR MORE CLOUD COVER...OTHERWISE NO CHANGES TO THE FORECAST THIS MORNING. LONG TERM...NOT TOO MUCH TO SAY AND NOT TOO MUCH TO CHANGE IN THE GOING FORECAST. STILL LOOKS LIKE THERE WILL BE MORE MOISTURE AROUND FOR THE WEEKEND AND EARLY NEXT WEEK LEADING TO A BETTER THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS AS PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES HOVER AROUND AN INCH. SOME DRYING EXPECTED THEREAFTER BUT PROBABLY NOT ENOUGH TO COMPLETELY ELIMINATE THE THUNDERSTORM THREAT. THERE IS A WAVE SLIDING BY TO OUR NORTH AROUND MID WEEK ADVERTIZED IN THE MODELS WHICH MAY PROVIDE A WEAK PUSH OF UPSLOPE ONTO THE PLAINS AROUND MIDWEEK. THIS COULD ALSO COUNTERACT THE DRYING TREND ALOFT FOR THE PLAINS AS SOME COOLER/MORE MOIST LOW LEVEL AIR MIGHT RIDE IN ON THIS ANTICYCLONIC FLOW. ALL IN ALL PRETTY TYPICAL WEATHER FOR THIS TIME OF THE YEAR. AVIATION...VFR CONDITIONS THROUGH TONIGHT. THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS IN THE DENVER AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...BUT CEILINGS WILL LIKELY REMAIN HIGH AND THERE IS JUST A CHANCE OF HAVING WIND GUSTS TO 30 KNOTS FROM THUNDERSTORMS. HYDROLOGY...THUNDERSTORMS TODAY ARE EXPECTED TO GENERALLY PRODUCE LIGHT RAINFALL...THERE MAY BE A FEW WITH BRIEF HEAVY RAIN BUT NOT ENOUGH TO CAUSE FLOODING. && .BOU WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && SHORT TERM...ENTREKIN LONG TERM....ET AVIATION...ENTREKIN
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER/BOULDER CO 1001 AM MDT FRI JUL 5 2013 COZ030>051-061615- JACKSON COUNTY BELOW 9000 FEET- WEST JACKSON AND WEST GRAND COUNTIES ABOVE 9000 FEET- GRAND AND SUMMIT COUNTIES BELOW 9000 FEET- SOUTH AND EAST JACKSON/LARIMER/NORTH AND NORTHEAST GRAND/ NORTHWEST BOULDER COUNTIES ABOVE 9000 FEET- SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST GRAND/WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST BOULDER/ GILPIN/CLEAR CREEK/SUMMIT/NORTH AND WEST PARK COUNTIES ABOVE 9000 FEET-LARIMER AND BOULDER COUNTIES BETWEEN 6000 AND 9000 FEET- JEFFERSON AND WEST DOUGLAS COUNTIES ABOVE 6000 FEET/GILPIN/CLEAR CREEK/NORTHEAST PARK COUNTIES BELOW 9000 FEET- CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PARK COUNTY- LARIMER COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/NORTHWEST WELD COUNTY- BOULDER AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES BELOW 6000 FEET/WEST BROOMFIELD COUNTY- NORTH DOUGLAS COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/DENVER/WEST ADAMS AND ARAPAHOE COUNTIES/EAST BROOMFIELD COUNTY- ELBERT/CENTRAL AND EAST DOUGLAS COUNTIES ABOVE 6000 FEET- NORTHEAST WELD COUNTY-CENTRAL AND SOUTH WELD COUNTY-MORGAN COUNTY- CENTRAL AND EAST ADAMS AND ARAPAHOE COUNTIES- NORTH AND NORTHEAST ELBERT COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/NORTH LINCOLN COUNTY- SOUTHEAST ELBERT COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/SOUTH LINCOLN COUNTY- LOGAN COUNTY-WASHINGTON COUNTY-SEDGWICK COUNTY-PHILLIPS COUNTY- 1001 AM MDT FRI JUL 5 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT MOISTURE LEVELS HAVE INCREASED ACROSS COLORADO TODAY...HOWEVER THE INCREASE IN CLOUDS HAVE LIMITED THE INSTABILITY FOR THUNDERSTORMS. DESPITE THE INITIAL LACK OF HEATING...THERE STILL SHOULD BE AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF SHOWERS TODAY OVER THE FRONT RANGE FOOTHILLS AND ADJACENT PLAINS. ONCE AGAIN...MOST OF THE STORMS WILL PRODUCE LIGHT RAINFALL...THOUGH A FEW COULD PRODUCE BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND WIND GUSTS TO 45 MPH. SHOWERS WILL DIMINISH FROM WEST TO EAST BY EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY THERE WILL BE A CHANCE OF LATE DAY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS THROUGH MONDAY...WITH A SLIGHT CHANCE OVER THE PLAINS. FROM TUESDAY ONWARD...MOISTURE WILL DECREASE AND SO WILL THE CHANCES OF RAINFALL. TEMPERATURES WILL HOVER AROUND SEASONAL NORMALS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT.
The Cheyenne radar (KCYS), 74 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:47 UTC.
1 flash flood, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy rain produced debris and mud flows in the High Park burn area.
Lightning struck down and destroyed a large tree in the Colorado State University annual flower trial garden.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, July 2013
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: 451125, 451126.