Monsoonal moisture remained over the area and resulted in numerous thunderstorms and some which produce intense rainfall that led to flash flooding and debris flows.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
Monsoonal moisture remained over the area and resulted in numerous thunderstorms and some which produce intense rainfall that led to flash flooding and debris flows.
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 Jul 20, 10:02 AM MST, 2 hours 58 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Grand Junction CO 1102 AM MDT WED JUL 20 2016 .SHORT TERM...(Today through Thursday) Issued at 337 AM MDT Wed Jul 20 2016 The moisture plume remain in place with PWAT over an inch on the KGJT RAOB at 00z and on ground sensors at KDRO. The radar however is much cooler tonight with a strong downturn in convection after midnight with out a strong trigger. This suggests a quieter start to the day and did lower pops going into the noon hour. Models still picking out a more distinct wave lifting north out of SW New Mexico this morning. This feature looks to arrive to the 4 corners late this afternoon and should provide some focus for storms to survive into the late evening across our southern CWA. There also appears to be some channelized vorticity riding the edge of the moisture plume in southeast Utah that could also focus some storms across the high plateaus into the northern mountains this afternoon. Forecast seems to be on track and didn't make major changes. All models a bit drier in our far northeast CWA and did trend QPF and pops downward here. Not much of different story for Thursday with PWAT still near an inch. Our moisture tap will begin to be disrupted however by a subtle westward shift in the subtropical high. Missed the high temperature forecast by nearly 10 degrees yesterday due to cloud cover and early morning rainfall. A quieter start today and will go with highs near to slightly above normal the next few days. .LONG TERM...(Thursday night through Tuesday) Issued at 337 AM MDT Wed Jul 20 2016 Through Friday, the moist SW flow continues. Both the more moist NAM and the drier GFS keep precipitable water values over one inch. No significant disturbances are resolved for now so a broad brush monsoonal surge forecast continues. The southern and eastern portion of the forecast area looks to be favored for showers. By Saturday, the Pacific NW upper Low ejects through the northern Rockies. This turns the upper flow from SW to a drier west. The subtropical High also expands across the southern tier of states. All of this brings a strong drying and warming trend to the forecast area that continues into at least next Tuesday. && .AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFS through 18Z Thursday afternoon) Issued at 1052 AM MDT Wed Jul 20 2016 Light showers will continue across areas in the vicinity and north of Interstate 70. Thunderstorm activity is expected to develop across southeast Utah and southwest Colorado initially and become widespread across all areas this afternoon and continue this evening. Some storm activity will continue through the overnight hours with a disturbance moving through. Some storms will contain brief moderate to heavy rainfall with temporary MVFR/IFR conditions possible in the vicinity of airfields with gusty erratic outflow winds possible as well. && .GJT Watches/Warnings/Advisories... CO...None. UT...None. && SHORT TERM...15 LONG TERM...JOE AVIATION...MDA
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 340 AM MDT WED JUL 20 2016 COZ001>014-017>023-UTZ022>025-027>029-211200- LOWER YAMPA RIVER BASIN-CENTRAL YAMPA RIVER BASIN- ROAN AND TAVAPUTS PLATEAUS-ELKHEAD AND PARK MOUNTAINS- UPPER YAMPA RIVER BASIN-GRAND VALLEY-DEBEQUE TO SILT CORRIDOR- CENTRAL COLORADO RIVER BASIN-GRAND AND BATTLEMENT MESAS- GORE AND ELK MOUNTAINS/CENTRAL MOUNTAIN VALLEYS- CENTRAL GUNNISON AND UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER BASIN- WEST ELK AND SAWATCH MOUNTAINS-FLAT TOPS- UPPER GUNNISON RIVER VALLEY-UNCOMPAHGRE PLATEAU AND DALLAS DIVIDE- NORTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS- PARADOX VALLEY/LOWER DOLORES RIVER- FOUR CORNERS/UPPER DOLORES RIVER-ANIMAS RIVER BASIN- SAN JUAN RIVER BASIN-SOUTHEAST UTAH-EASTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS- EASTERN UINTA BASIN-TAVAPUTS PLATEAU-ARCHES/GRAND FLAT- LA SAL AND ABAJO MOUNTAINS-CANYONLANDS/NATURAL BRIDGES- 340 AM MDT WED JUL 20 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN UTAH AND WESTERN COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT WILL BE POSSIBLE OVER MUCH OF THE NEXT 24 HOURS WITH A MAXIMUM IN COVERAGE EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH MID EVENING. SOME OF THE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING BRIEF HEAVY RAINFALL WHICH COULD IMPACT DRIVING CONDITIONS AND PRODUCE AREAS OF HEAVY RUNOFF. LOCALIZED MINOR FLOODING IS POSSIBLE AND NORMALLY DRY WASHES MAY BEGIN TO FLOW. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY THIS SURGE OF MONSOON MOISTURE WILL BRING INCREASED SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY THROUGHOUT THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK AND INTO THE WEEKEND. SOME STORMS MAY BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING EXCESSIVE RAINFALL POSSIBLY LEADING TO LOCALIZED FLOODING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
The Grand Junction radar (KGJX), 117 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:00 UTC.
2 debris flow, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy rainfall led to numerous mudslides across Highway 145 between Telluride and Placerville which closed the highway.
A flash flood flowed across County Road 5 in the Piceance Creek Basin.
A debris flow of rocks and mud came down onto Nottingham Road in Avon.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, July 2016
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: 682916, 682919, 683073.