A student from Colorado State Univeristy was killed in an avalanche near Cameron Pass. Two men were skiing in the backcountry near the Nokhu Crags in an area known as the Paradise Bowl.
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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.
A student from Colorado State Univeristy was killed in an avalanche near Cameron Pass. Two men were skiing in the backcountry near the Nokhu Crags in an area known as the Paradise Bowl. They had finished their run, and their dog was running down the tracks when the slide let loose. The victim's friend, also a college student, was trapped by the avalanche but survived for three hours entombed in snow until rescuers located him via his avalanche beacon. He suffered hypothermia and was hospitalized in fair condition. The dog was missing and presumed dead.
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 Mar 2, 11:08 AM MST, 1 hour 42 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER/BOULDER CO 1108 AM MST SAT MAR 2 2013 .UPDATE... && .SHORT TERM...SATELLITE PICTURES ARE SHOWING A GROWING MOUNTAIN WAVE CLOUD...MAINLY OVER BOULDER AND NORTHWESTERN JEFFERSON COUNTIES. THE NORTHWESTERLIES OVER THE NORTHERN PLAINS BORDER AND NORTHEAST CORNER ARE BLOWING AT 10-25 KNOTS RIGHT NOW. NO PRECIPITATION ANYWHERE. THE TEMPERATURE IS ABOUT 10 DEGREES F WARMER AT DIA RIGHT NOW COMPARED TO YESTERDAY. GFE TEMPERATURES GRIDS LOOK OK. NO CHANGES .AVIATION...IT LOOKS AS THROUGH THE SOUTHERLIES WILL BECOME SOUTHEASTERLY SOON. VFR CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 221 AM MST SAT MAR 2 2013/ SHORT TERM...UPPER LEVEL RIDGE AXIS WILL SHIFT EASTWARD OVER THE GREAT BASIN TODAY AND THEN OVER COLORADO TONIGHT. GOOD WARM ADVECTION WILL OCCUR AS THE RIDGE BUILDS IN...WITH MID LEVEL TEMPS WARMING ABOUT 5C. THERE IS STILL A FAIR AMOUNT OF MID LEVEL CLOUDINESS TRAPPED IN THE MOUNTAINS AND ACROSS THE EASTERN PLAINS RIGHT NOW...BUT DRIER AND WARMER AIR SPREADING INTO THE REGION WILL ALLOW THESE TO BREAK UP BY MID MORNING. THERE IS SOME THREAT OF MOUNTAIN WAVE CLOUDINESS...BUT WE ARE ON THE EDGE OF BETTER UPPER LEVEL MOISTURE THROUGH THE DAY SO ANY WAVE CLOUDS ARE EXPECTED TO BE LESS PERSISTENT AND LIMITED IN EXTENT. SYNTHETIC IMAGERY FROM WRF SHOWS ONLY THIN WAVE CLOUD WHILE NAM SHOWS NONE. THE COMBINATION OF WARM ADVECTION...MORE SUNSHINE...AND LESS EXTENSIVE SNOW COVER SHOULD RESULT IN A GOOD 10 DEGREE INCREASE IN HIGH TEMPS TODAY. READINGS OVER THE HEART OF THE SNOW COVER IN RURAL ADAMS...ARAPAHOE...AND ELBERT COUNTIES MAY VERY WELL SEE HIGHS HOLD IN THE 40S...WHILE A FEW SPOTS WITH LITTLE OR NO SNOW COVER COULD REACH 60. HIGH CLOUDINESS WILL LIKELY THICKEN QUICKLY OVER THE FORECAST AREA TONIGHT AS UPPER LEVEL MOISTURE PLUME SPREADS OVER THE STATE. THIS WILL RESULT IN MILD TEMPERATURES OVERNIGHT. WINDS BEGIN TO INCREASE ACROSS THE FRONT RANGE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS LATE. LONG TERM...WLY FLOW ALOFT WILL BE OVER THE AREA ON SUN WHICH WILL BECOME MORE WNW SUN NIGHT AS AN UPPER LEVEL LOW MOVES INTO THE NRN ROCKIES. SNOW CHANCES SHOULD INCREASE LATE SUN AFTN INTO SUN NIGHT IN THE MTNS AS MOISTURE INCREASES AND OROGRAPHICS BECOME FAVORABLE. WITH GUSTY WINDS AND SNOW WILL LIKELY NEED SOME HIGHLIGHTS FOR SUN NIGHT. OVER NERN CO IT WILL BE DRY WITH MILD TEMPS AS HIGHS RISE INTO THE UPPER 50S TO LOWERS. WINDS WILL BE GUSTY AT TIMES IN AND NR THE FOOTHILLS HOWEVER AT THIS TIME SPEEDS LOOK TO BE BLO HIGHLIGHT CRITERIA. ON MON THE UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL MOVE INTO THE CNTRL PLAINS WITH THE FLOW ALOFT BECOMING NWLY. SOME SNOW WILL CONTINUE IN THE MTNS THRU MON MORNING BUT DECREASE BY AFTN. OVER NERN CO A CDFNT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE PLAINS MON MORNING WITH GUSTY NLY WINDS DEVELOPING. OVERALL THE ECMWF SHOWS MORE MOISTURE EAST OF THE MTNS ON MON VS THE NAM AND GFS. IN ADDITION BOTH THE ECMWF AND GFS SHOW NERN CO BEING IN THE FAVORED LEFT FNT QUADRANT OF A STRONGER UPPER LEVEL JET BY MON AFTN WHICH COULD ENHANCE LIFT AND INCREASE PCPN CHANCES IF ENOUGH MOISTURE IS PRESENT. THUS FOR NOW WILL JUST MENTIONS LOW POPS ACROSS THE PLAINS. HIGHS ON MON WILL DROP BACK INTO THE LOWER TO MID 40S BEHIND THE FNT OVER THE PLAINS. BY TUE AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE WILL BUILD OVER THE AREA WITH DRY CONDITIONS WITH HIGHS IN THE 40S ACROSS NERN CO. ON WED THE FLOW ALOFT WILL BECOME MORE SWLY AS AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH DEVELOPS ALONG THE WRN US COAST. AT THIS TIME CROSS-SECTIONS ONLY SHOW SOME HIGHER LEVEL MOISTURE SO WILL KEEP FCST DRY IN THE MTNS WITH TEMPS RISING BACK INTO THE 50S TO POSSIBLY NEAR 60 ACROSS THE PLAINS. FOR THU THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH OVER THE WRN US IS FCST TO SPLIT WITH ONE PIECE OF ENERGY LIFTING ACROSS THE NRN ROCKIES WHILE THE OTHER PIECE OF ENERGY DIGS SOUTHWARD INTO SRN CALIFORNIA. THIS LEAVES NRN CO IN SWLY FLOW ALOFT. OVERALL THIS PTRN WOULD LEAVE THE BEST CHC OF SNOW MAINLY IN ZN 31 ON THU. EAST OF THE MTNS IT WILL REMAIN DRY WITH ANOTHER DAY OF MILD TEMPS. BY FRI AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL INTENSIFY OVER THE SWN US WITH SWLY FLOW REMAINING OVER NRN CO. MEANWHILE A CDFNT IS FCST TO MOVE INTO NERN CO THU NIGHT INTO FRI MORNING BRINGING COLDER TEMPS AND UPSLOPE FLOW. THUS COULD SEE A SLIGHT CHC OF PCPN OVER NERN CO IF ENOUGH MOISTURE IS PRESENT. IN THE MTNS WITH SWLY FLOW ALOFT WILL MENTION A CHC OF SNOW. AVIATION...LOOK FOR GENERALLY SCT CLOUDS ABOVE 20K FT TODAY AND THEN BROKEN UPPER LEVEL CLOUDINESS NEAR 20K FT TONIGHT. LIGHT AND NORMAL DIURNAL WIND PATTERNS EXPECTED AT KDEN AND KAPA...WHILE KBJC COULD SEE A FEW GUSTS NEAR 20KTS BEFORE 16Z THIS MORNING AND THEN AGAIN AFTER 10Z TONIGHT. && .BOU WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && SHORT TERM...99 LONG TERM....99 AVIATION...99
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER/BOULDER CO 1038 AM MST SAT MAR 2 2013 COZ030>051-031745- 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- 1038 AM MST SAT MAR 2 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT WARMER TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TODAY AND TONIGHT AS A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS INTO COLORADO. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY STRONG GUSTY WINDS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS SUNDAY...SPREADING ONTO THE NEARBY ADJACENT PLAINS IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND GUSTS UP TO 60 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE IN AND NEAR THE FRONT RANGE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS. SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW WILL ALSO DEVELOP IN THE MOUNTAINS WITH HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS POSSIBLE LATE SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. ACCUMULATIONS OF 4 TO 8 INCHES CAN BE EXPECTED MAINLY IN ELEVATIONS ABOVE 9000 FEET. BY MONDAY...MOUNTAIN SNOW WILL DECREASE BUT THE STRONG WINDS WILL LIKELY SPREAD ACROSS THE NORTHEAST PLAINS BEHIND A COLD FRONT. THE GUSTY WINDS AND MOUNTAIN SNOW WILL OCCUR AS A FAST MOVING AND POTENT UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM MOVES FROM THE NORTHERN ROCKIES SUNDAY INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS STATES BY MONDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 avalanche. Local standard time, as filed.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avalanche, West Jackson & West Grand Counties Above 9000 Feet | 2013-03-02 | 1 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
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, March 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: 441421.