Strong winds impacted portions of southern Colorado during the afternoon of the 3rd with numerous reports of wind gusts in the 60 to 79 mph range recorded near the Air Force Academy in El Paso county, with even a report of a 81 mph wind gust observed 3 miles to the west-southwest of the Air Force Academy. Elsewhere, a 64 mph wind gust was noted near Fountain, while 65 mph wind gusts were…
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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 PUB wrote it up.
Strong winds impacted portions of southern Colorado during the afternoon of the 3rd with numerous reports of wind gusts in the 60 to 79 mph range recorded near the Air Force Academy in El Paso county, with even a report of a 81 mph wind gust observed 3 miles to the west-southwest of the Air Force Academy. Elsewhere, a 64 mph wind gust was noted near Fountain, while 65 mph wind gusts were observed near Wetmore and Manitou Springs. In addition, a large tree knocked down by the strong winds caused damage to a business in Westcliffe.
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 Pueblo, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 3, 10:47 AM MST, 13 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Pueblo CO 1047 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 .UPDATE... Issued at 959 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 Mountain wave winds have been slower to materialize this morning and upon examination of latest set of model cross-sections and soundings it appears mtn top winds have been slower to increase than originally anticipated. By the time they do, later this afternoon cooling aloft eats away at the mtn top inversion which may limit how far down the slopes the stronger gusts will go. Have pulled back on wind gusts grids some...limiting high winds to the mountains and adjacent lower eastern slopes. In fact...latest HRRR is hitting Walsenburg with less wind than originally anticipated. However with deep mixing...some gusts to around 60 mph will still be possible along the I-25 corridor but think these will be spottier than originally expected. Will maintain current set of highlights for now. Pueblo county high wind warning may be the most vulnerable to not verifying...but will let it ride a little longer. Otherwise...all other aspects of the forecast still look on track with heaviest snow impacting the eastern San Juan mountains through today, and a brief round of light to moderate wind driven snow for the remainder of the Continental Divide. Critical fire weather conditions still expected along the I-25 corridor this afternoon where fuels are critical. -KT && .SHORT TERM...(Today and tonight) Issued at 409 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 ...High winds, mountain snowfall along the Continental Divide and dangerous fire weather conditions through this afternoon... Currently...a strong shortwave trough over Utah is forecast to move northeast into eastern Wyoming through this afternoon. Ahead of the shortwave, snow has spread along the Continental Divide early this morning. In addition, gusty winds are also starting to impinge across the higher elevations where gusts have reached around 45 mph so far. Mid and high level clouds have also spread across the region early this morning. Clouds, along with winds, have helped keep mild temperatures across the lower elevations, especially along the lee slopes of the Eastern Mountains where temperatures are in the mid 40s. Today...multiple weather concerns are expected through this afternoon. Snow, ongoing this morning will continue into this afternoon along the Continental Divide. Given the southwesterly flow aloft, locations over the San Juan Range will be favored. Periods of moderate to heavy snow are expected, especially this morning into early afternoon, before tapering off later today. Locations over the San Juan range will likely see 6 to 12 inches with locally heavier amounts possible. Further north over the La Garita Range, into the Central Mountains, snow totals of 2 to 5 inches are expected. Light snow will be possible over the Sangre de Cristo Range as well, with a couple inches possible. Blowing and drifting of snow will be problematic across the higher elevations through this afternoon. This will create hazardous travel conditions over mountain passes due to low visibilities and snowpacked roads. Extreme caution is advised for travelers over Monarch, Poncha and Wolf Creek Passes today. High winds...current setup looks good across the Eastern Mountains, east into the I-25 corridor for high winds from mid morning into mid afternoon as the upper shortwave lifts across the region. Model cross sections indicate a period of mountain wave activity with favorable shear and stability profiles peaking around 11 AM this morning, through about 3 PM this afternoon over the Eastern Mountains, down into the I-25 corridor, before spreading east across the Plains this afternoon. For the higher elevations, wind gusts in excess of 75 mph are likely. Along the lee slopes, down into the I- 25 corridor, gusts in excess of 60 mph are forecast, especially for locations from Pueblo, south to Trinidad. The strongest winds are forecast west of I-25 as of now. Extreme caution is advised on north-south highways due to strong cross winds for high profile and light vehicles. In addition to high winds, high fire danger is expected along the lee slopes into the I-25 corridor this afternoon. Winds, as mentioned above will be strong. Humidity values are expected to fall near 15 percent along all of the I-25 corridor by this afternoon, leading to high fire danger. East of I-25, winds will be weaker, with widespread gusts in excess of 30 mph, however, humidity values look to be a bit higher near 20 percent. That being said, outdoor burning should be postponed this afternoon across the region due to the high winds. Temperatures will warm nicely today with near record highs across the Plains. Widespread upper 60s to lower 70s are expected. Tonight...the upper level shortwave will continue northeast into the upper midwest overnight tonight. Broad westerly to southwesterly flow is expected aloft. This will likely keep periods of light snow going along the Continental Divide into Monday morning, with minor accumulations possible. Breezy conditions will likely prevail overnight which will help keep overnight lows on the mild side, with upper 20s to lower 30s across the lower elevations. Mozley .LONG TERM...(Monday through Saturday) Issued at 409 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 Monday and Tuesday...Brisk west to southwest flow aloft will keep the threat of snow firmly in place for the mts both days, as well as continued warm conditions for the eastern plains. The Continental Divide is expected to bear the brunt of the new snow, with 4 to 6 inches of additional accumulation possible over the course of Mon and Tue. The winds will likely not reach high wind criteria, but will be strong enough to create areas of blowing snow over mt passes. Expect high temps both days to be right around freezing for the San Luis Valley, in the 40s to near 50F for the Upper Arkansas River Valley, and in the 50s to around 60F for the plains. Wednesday and Thursday...The next weather feature to affect Colorado actually moves onshore across the West Coast early Tue, then pushes into the Great Basin Tue night. This upper trough of low pressure will shift winds aloft to a more sw direction and strengthen, drawing a good amount of moisture up into western CO overnight Tue into Wed. Snowfall will increase in intensity over the higher terrain through the day Wed, and some sort of winter weather highlight will likely be needed. The upper trough axis crosses into CO late Wed, then sweeps east across the state through the day Thu before exiting to the east Thu night. As this trough moves across the state on Thu, a cold front drops south across the Palmer Divide Thu morning introducing much colder air as well as showers for the eastern plains. Highs on Wed are forecast to be in the 30s for the high valleys, and mid 40s to mid 50s for the plains. However, Thu will be dramatically colder with highs in the 20s to near 30F for all areas. Friday and Saturday...As the upper system pushes to the east and out of Colorado late Thu, Fri and Sat are setting up to be mainly dry with a gradual rebound of temps for the forecast area. Expect highs in the 20s to mid 30s for the high valleys both days. Across the plains, look for max temps in the mid 30s to mid 40s on Fri, then in the 40s for Sat. Moore && .AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFS through 18Z Monday afternoon) Issued at 1031 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 TAF sites will remain VFR today with waves of mid/high cloudiness at times gradually clearing to the east during the afternoon. Strong southwest to west winds will spread down into all three terminals during the afternoon...occuring around 18z for both KCOS and KALS...and by 19 or 20z for KPUB. Gusts to 35 to 40 kts will be possible at all three terminals...though higher gusts to around 50 kts will be possible closer to the mountains. Turbulence will continue across southern CO with pockets of LLWS possible in the immediate lee of the mountains. Meanwhile...LIFR conditions in SN and BLSN will continue across the southwest mountains, including Wolf Creek Pass, today. Expect a round of IFR conditions for the remainder of the mountains along the Continental Divide as a wave of snow showers spreads in during the afternoon. The southeast mountains will see periodic mtn top obscurations in -SHSN through the day but this will decrease through the afternoon. -KT && .PUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... High Wind Warning until 8 PM MST this evening for COZ072>075- 078>080-082-083-086>088. Red Flag Warning until 6 PM MST this evening for COZ227>230. Winter Storm Warning until 6 PM MST this evening for COZ068. && UPDATE...KT SHORT TERM...MOZLEY LONG TERM...MOORE AVIATION...KT
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Pueblo CO 1053 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 COZ058>089-093>099-041800- Western Mosquito Range/East Lake County Above 11000 Feet- Leadville Vicinity/Lake County Below 11000 Feet- Eastern Sawatch Mountains Above 11000 Feet- Western Chaffee County Between 9000 and 11000 Feet- Central Chaffee County Below 9000 Feet- Western Mosquito Range/East Chaffee County Above 9000 Feet- Saguache County West of Continental Divide Below 10000 Feet- Saguache County East of Continental Divide Below 10000 Feet- La Garita Mountains Above 10000 Feet- Upper Rio Grande Valley/Eastern San Juan Mountains Below 10000 Feet-Eastern San Juan Mountains Above 10000 Feet- Del Norte Vicinity/Northern San Luis Valley Below 8500 Feet- Alamosa Vicinity/Central San Luis Valley Below 8500 Feet- Southern San Luis Valley- Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Between 8500 And 11000 Feet- Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Above 11000 Feet- Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Between 7500 and 11000 Feet- Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Above 11000 Feet- Northwestern Fremont County Above 8500 Feet- Western/Central Fremont County Below 8500 Feet- Wet Mountain Valley Below 8500 Feet- Wet Mountains between 6300 and 10000 Feet- Wet Mountains Above 10000 Feet- Teller County/Rampart Range Above 7500 Feet/Pikes Peak Between 7500 And 11000 Feet-Pikes Peak Above 11000 Feet- Canon City Vicinity/Eastern Fremont County- Northern El Paso County/Monument Ridge/Rampart Range Below 7500 Feet- Colorado Springs Vicinity/Southern El Paso County/Rampart Range Below 7400 Feet-Pueblo Vicinity/Pueblo County Below 6300 Feet- Walsenburg Vicinity/Upper Huerfano River Basin Below 7500 Feet- Trinidad Vicinity/Western Las Animas County Below 7500 Feet- Crowley County-La Junta Vicinity/Otero County- Eastern Las Animas County-Western Kiowa County- Eastern Kiowa County-Las Animas Vicinity/Bent County- Lamar Vicinity/Prowers County-Springfield Vicinity/Baca County- 1053 AM MST Sun Feb 3 2019 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of central...east central...south central and southeast Colorado. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight Wind driven snow will continue along the Continental Divide this afternoon. The highest snowfall totals are expected over the eastern San Juan mountains, where 6 to 12 inches are forecast. Further north, over the La Garita Range and Central Mountains, generally 2 to 5 inches are expected. Strong winds will create blowing and drifting of snow causing hazardous travel conditions, especially over Wolf Creek Pass. Monarch and Poncha Passes could also experience brief periods of snow and blowing snow this afternoon as snow showers move in. High winds are expected into this afternoon, for the Eastern Mountains, down into portions of the Interstate 25 corridor. The peak period for strong winds will be through 3 PM. Mountain areas will see wind gusts in excess of 75 mph, while lower elevations, primarily west of Interstate 25, will see gusts in excess of 60 mph. These winds will cause hazardous travel conditions on north to south highways, including Interstate 25. Dangerous fire weather conditions are expected this afternoon along the Interstate 25 corridor. The strong winds, will combine with humidity values around 15 percent and dry fuels to produce the dangerous fire weather conditions. East of Interstate 25, winds will be gusty, however, humidity values are expected to remain above 15 percent through the afternoon. By tonight, winds will dissipate and snow along the Continental Divide will become lighter. Additional snow accumulations of an inch or two are possible tonight into Monday morning along the Continental Divide. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Monday through Saturday Periods of light snow are expected along the Continental Divide for Monday and Tuesday. Minor snow accumulations are expected, especially on southwest facing slopes and the San Juan Range. Another storm system will approach Colorado late Tuesday, bringing a better chance for moderate to heavy snow to all of the mountains starting Wednesday, as well as some snow showers for the plains on Thursday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Weather conditions that meet reporting criteria for spotters will be possible along the Continental Divide, over the Eastern Mountains and into the Interstate 25 corridor through this evening. 31/23
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
15 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, February 2019
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: 809861, 809862, 809864, 809865, 809869, 809880, 809881, 809874, 809875, 809868, 809866, 809871, 809872, 809873, 809878.