A low pressure system brought significant late-season snow to some central Colorado mountain areas.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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.
A low pressure system brought significant late-season snow to some central Colorado mountain areas.
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 May 26, 5:13 PM MST, 47 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Grand Junction CO 613 PM MDT THU MAY 26 2016 .SHORT TERM...(This evening through Friday night) Issued at 334 PM MDT Thu May 26 2016 Showers and thunderstorms developed across the forecast area as a low pressure system moved over the four corners today. The center of this circulation will track east of the Continental Divide late this evening, then across southeast Colorado on Friday. As a result, scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms will continue this evening before diminishing from the west after midnight. By late evening the chance for thunderstorms will quickly end as the low center shifts east. Snow is expected above around 10000 feet, with up to 6 inches possible along the Colorado mountains from around Vail Pass southward to around Monarch Pass. On Friday, a transient high pressure ridge will move overhead. However, wrap around moisture will keep showers and late day thunderstorms in the forecast, albeit with a modest downturn. Again mountains will be favored, with little to no activity over the western valleys. Lingering showers/thunderstorms will wind down during the evening as daytime heating wanes. Temperatures will warm a little on Friday as the high pressure moves overhead. But temps will still stay below normal for late May. .LONG TERM...(Saturday through Thursday) Issued at 334 PM MDT Thu May 26 2016 The long wave trough will reload along the west coast during the weekend as the next low pressure disturbance develops over southern California. The flow over our area will quickly become southwest again by Sat. This relatively unstable flow will carry enough moisture to keep afternoon convection in the forecast...mainly along the mountains. Models show this low weakening as it gradually tracks east early in the work week. Also a stronger low center over the Pacific northwest will shift east. As both of these features head east, high pressure will develop along the west coast. So continued mainly mountain convection can be expected each afternoon through Tue. Then the west coast ridge will strengthen and move into the Great Basin for warmer and drier conditions midweek and beyond. Temperatures are expected to be a tad below normal during the weekend, then right around normal through the first half of the work week. Temps will then climb to just a tad above normal by the end of the period. && .AVIATION...(For the 00Z TAFS through 00Z Friday evening) Issued at 600 PM MDT Thu May 26 2016 The storm system will work onto the plains through the night. Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms will continue mainly over the mountains through 06z. Gusty winds to 35 mph and small hail near possible with storms, with snow above 8000 ft. Mountain tops may see brief obscuration. From 06z-18z VFR conditions dominate with only isolated showers mainly over the central mountains. After 18z Friday scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms will again fire over area mountains with a 20-30% chance of brief impacts at VFR sites. && .GJT Watches/Warnings/Advisories... CO...Winter Weather Advisory until 6 AM MDT Friday for COZ010-012. UT...None. && SHORT TERM...EH LONG TERM...EH AVIATION...Joe
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
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Snowfall amounts of around 2 inches were measured across the area. Highway 50 over Monarch Pass was snowpacked and slick.
Snowfall amounts of around 2 inches were measured across the area.
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, May 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: 668793, 668792.