Excessive Heat in Colorado
Every excessive heat event the National Weather Service has filed in Colorado, year by year, with the most significant episodes. Heat at or above the local excessive heat warning criteria, or heat that caused deaths.
The most significant on the map
The most significant excessive heat episodes in Colorado.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 5
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Damage
- None recorded
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Excessive Heat in Colorado, June 1, 2022A ridge of high pressure dominated the Four Corners region. This resulted in scorching heat and dry weather across much of western Colorado. Conditions were exceptionally dry which translated to minimum humidities in the single digits to low teens in the lower valleys.
- Excessive Heat and Extreme Cold in Colorado, January 17 to 22, 2025A cold front ushered in an arctic airmass on the evening of January 17th, as well as bringing widespread wind and snow to eastern Utah and western Colorado.
- Excessive Heat in Colorado, June 14 to 18, 2021A large ridge of high pressure dominated the western United States for several days. This resulted in scorching heat and dry weather across the lower elevations of west-central Colorado. Conditions were exceptionally dry which translated to single digit humidity at the surface.
- Excessive Heat in Colorado, July 17, 2022A ridge of high pressure dominated the Four Corners region. This resulted in scorching heat and dry weather across the Grand Valley. Conditions were exceptionally dry which translated to minimum humidities in the single digits to low teens.
- Excessive Heat in Colorado, July 17, 2023A strong ridge of high pressure dominated the Desert Southwest for several days before its axis moved directly over the Western Slope. This led to scorching heat across the desert valley floors under sunny skies with humidities dropping into the single digits to low teens.
More
Sources
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.