Tornadoes · United States · Colorado · 2009
EF0 tornado, Sugar City to Cheraw, Colorado, June 11, 2009
From Sugar City to Cheraw, this EF0 tornado ran 1.1 miles across Crowley and Otero counties on June 11, 2009, touching down at 6:35 PM MDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
The record
- Rating
- EF0
- Date
- June 11, 2009
- Touchdown
- 6:35 PM MDT (00:35 UTC)
- Lifted
- 6:37 PM MDT (00:37 UTC)
- On the ground
- 2 minutes
- Path length
- 1.1 miles (1.8 km)
- Path width
- 50 yards (46 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Counties
- Crowley and Otero counties
- Touchdown point
- 38.206, -103.524
- Lift-off point
- 38.203, -103.503
- Record number
- 0906111835-01
What the Weather Service recorded
A long-lasting supercell tracked across southeast Colorado, producing large hail, high winds, and two short-lived tornadoes.
This tornado formed at 1735 MST in Crowley County, 8.1 miles east-southeast of Sugar City, and moved east for around 0.8 miles before exiting Crowley County around 8.9 miles east-southeast of Sugar City at 1736 MST. The tornado continued in Otero County for another 0.35 miles, before dissipating at 1737 MST.
A tornado formed in Crowley County at 1735 MST, 8.1 miles east-southeast of Sugar City and moved into Otero County 8.9 miles east-southeast of Sugar City, or 6.5 miles north of Cheraw at 1736 MST. The tornado traveled another 0.35 miles to the east and dissipated at 1737 MST, 9.25 miles east-southeast of Sugar City, or 6.4 miles north of Cheraw.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the tornado touched down, 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 tornado touched down at Jun 11, 3:29 PM MDT, 3 hours 6 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jun 11, 3:29 PM MDT, 3 hours 6 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO 329 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009 .SHORT TERM... (TONIGHT AND FRIDAY) ...SEVERE WEATHER THREAT THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING THE MAIN FORECAST CONCERNS... SHORTWAVE EVIDENT IN WV PICS AND MODEL PV FIELDS ALREADY MOVING THROUGH WESTERN COLORADO. THUNDERSTORMS HAVE ALREADY STARTED DEVELOPING ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS WITH THE APPROACH OF THIS SYSTEM. LIMITING FACTOR SO FAR HAS BEEN THE SURFACE HEATING ACROSS THE PLAINS DUE TO EXTENSIVE AREA OF LOW AND MID CLOUDINESS. QUITE A BIT OF DISPARITY BETWEEN THE MODELS TODAY WITH THE PROGGED POSITION OF THE OLD FRONTAL BOUNDARY. GFS LIFTS IT NORTHWARD TO NEAR THE ARKANSAS RIVER VALLEY BY LATE AFTN. NAM KEEPS THE FRONT PINNED UP ALONG THE NRN SLOPES OF THE RATON. RUC13 SOLN IS MORE IN LINE WITH THE NAM. AS OF 18Z...LAPS 3HR PRESSURE CHANGE FIELDS ONLY SHOWING SOME WEAK PRESSURE FALLS ACROSS SE CO AND KTAD STILL HAS A DEW POINT OF 52...THOUGH SOME LOWER 40S DEW POINTS ARE STARTING TO APPEAR ALONG THE CREST OF THE RATON RIDGE IN MESONET STATIONS. GIVEN ALL THESE OBSERVATIONS...WILL LEAN FORECAST TOWARDS RUC/NAM SOLNS. CONVECTION SHOULD ROLL OFF THE MOUNTAINS THROUGH THE AFTN...WITH LAPSE RATES STEEPENING ALOFT WITH INCOMING SYSTEM...COMBINED WITH SOME SFC BASED HEATING IN CLOUD BREAKS ALONG THE EASTERN SLOPES/ADJACENT PLAINS...COULD SEE CAPES OF UP 1000-1500J/KG. DEEP LAYER SHEARS RUNNING AROUND 40 KTS...SUPPORTIVE OF SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS. LCLS ARE LOW...AND WHERE LOW LVL WINDS TURN EASTERLY...HELICITIES WILL BECOME ENHANCED TO SUPPORT AN ISOLATED TORNADO THREAT. ALL THIS ACTIVITY CONGEALS INTO AN MCS ACROSS EAST CENTRAL COLORADO DURING THE EVENING BEFORE EXITING EASTERN CO. STRATUS MAKES ANOTHER PUSH INTO SE COLORADO OVERNIGHT WITH ANOTHER CLOUDY START TO THE DAY ON FRIDAY. FRIDAY LOOKS A BIT LESS ACTIVE...WITH DRIER AIR MOVING INTO WESTERN SECTIONS OF THE DISTRICT. LITTLE TO NO SHORTWAVES EVIDENT IN PV FIELDS TO HELP ENHANCE TSTORM DEVELOPMENT. HOWEVER...MOIST AIRMASS WILL STILL BE BANKED UP ALONG THE EASTERN SLOPES OF THE SE MTS. BY AFTN...NAM HAS DEW POINTS DECREASING INTO THE 40S INSTEAD OF THE 50S...SO THERE COULD BE LESS CAPE ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE SE PLAINS. HOWEVER...AFTERNOON HEATING WILL LIKELY ACT ON THE WESTERN EDGE OF THE MOISTURE GRADIENT ACROSS THE EASTERN MOUNTAINS TO FIRE OFF SCATTERED AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS. WITH EASTERLY SFC FLOW BENEATH MODERATE WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT...DEEP LAYER SHEARS ARE STILL RUNNING AROUND 50 KTS...SO COULD SEE A SEVERE STORM OR TWO ACROSS THE EASTERN MOUNTAINS AND ADJACENT PLAINS. THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE OFF INTO THE ADJACENT PLAINS DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING WITH BEST THREAT AREA PROBABLY ALONG/NORTH OF THE PALMER DIVIDE. .LONG TERM... (FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY) WILL KEEP THE DISCUSSION BRIEF DUE TO ONGOING SEVERE POTENTIAL. LONG RANGE MODELS CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN THE PERSISTENT WEATHER PATTERN ALOFT FOR THE STATE THROUGH THE PERIOD. THAT IS...UPPER TROUGH REMAINS ANCHORED TO THE WEST COAST...PROVIDING SW FLOW ALOFT FOR THE 4 CORNERS WITH INTERMITTENT PIECES OF ENERGY RIDING THE FLOW UP INTO COLORADO. MEANHWILE...OCCASIONAL NORTHERLY SURGES OF SFC HI PRESSURE AND COOLER MORE MOIST AIR WILL DROP DOWN THE MID-SECTION OF THE COUNTRY...PROVIDING MOIST LLVL UPSLOPE FLOW ACROSS THE PLAINS. THEREFORE...THERE WILL REMAIN AT LEAST AN ISOLATED CHANCE FOR CONVECTION DAY AND NIGHT THROUGH TIL THU. THE PATTERN IS SUCH THAT THE AREAS WITH THE HIGHEST POTENTIAL WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE MTS...MORE SO THE CONTDVD...AND THE PALMER DVD/RAMPART RANGE AREA. PLENTY OF SHEAR...0-6 KM BULK AT 45-55 KTS...AND CAPES OF 1200-NEAR 2000 J/KG ACROSS THE EASTERN PLAINS MEANS SATURDAY STILL LOOKS TO BE A DAY FOR POTENTIAL SEVERE WX. ENHANCED CAPE SHIFTS FROM THE SE CORNER AT 15Z...THE I25 CORRIDOR AT 18Z...THEN ALL OF THE PLAINS BY 21Z. ONE OF THE DECIDING FACTORS WILL BE THAT THE MODELS ARE INDICATING HEALTHY EASTERLY FLOW EARLY MORNING. IF THIS EQUATES TO THICK AM CLOUD COVER...THINGS MAY HAVE A LONGER TIME TO GET GOING. AS STATED EARLY...PATTERN REMAINS SOMEWHAT STAGNANT THRU THE PERIOD...AND AT THIS POINT FINE-TUNING REALLY NEEDS TO BE DONE ON THE FRONT END. MOORE && .AVIATION... SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON...WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN...MVFR CIGS...HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS THE PRIMARY THREATS. A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE...WHICH COULD AFFECT THE KCOS AND KPUB TAF SITES BETWEEN 22Z AND 02Z. THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL LIKELY CONGEAL INTO A THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX ACROSS EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST COLORADO LATE THIS EVENING. IFR TO MVFR STRATUS DECK SHOULD SPREAD BACK INTO EASTERN CO AFTER 06Z...AFFECTING THE KCOS AND KPUB TAF SITES. CIGS MAY BREAK A LITTLE SOONER ON FRIDAY. THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE AGAIN FRIDAY AFTERNOON. && .PUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 31/27
Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 11, 12:05 PM MDT, 6 hours 30 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO 1205 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009 COZ058>089-093>099-121815- WESTERN MOSQUITO RANGE/EAST LAKE COUNTY ABOVE 11000 FT- LEADVILLE VICINITY/LAKE COUNTY BELOW 11000 FT- EASTERN SAWATCH MOUNTAINS ABOVE 11000 FT- WESTERN CHAFFEE COUNTY BETWEEN 9000 AND 11000 FT- CENTRAL CHAFFEE COUNTY BELOW 9000 FT- WESTERN MOSQUITO RANGE/EAST CHAFFEE COUNTY ABOVE 9000 FT- SAGUACHE COUNTY WEST OF CONTINENTAL DIVIDE BELOW 10000 FT- SAGUACHE COUNTY EAST OF CONTINENTAL DIVIDE BELOW 10000 FT- LA GARITA MOUNTAINS ABOVE 10000 FT- UPPER RIO GRANDE VALLEY/EASTERN SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS BELOW 10000 FT- EASTERN SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS ABOVE 10000 FT- DEL NORTE VICINITY/NORTHERN SAN LUIS VALLEY BELOW 8500 FT- ALAMOSA VICINITY/CENTRAL SAN LUIS VALLEY BELOW 8500 FT- SOUTHERN SAN LUIS VALLEY- NORTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS BETWEEN 8500 AND 11000 FT- NORTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS ABOVE 11000 FEET- SOUTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS BETWEEN 7500 AND 11000 FT- SOUTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS ABOVE 11000 FT- NORTHWESTERN FREMONT COUNTY ABOVE 8500 FT- WESTERN/CENTRAL FREMONT COUNTY BELOW 8500 FT- WET MOUNTAIN VALLEY BELOW 8500 FEET- WET MOUNTAINS BETWEEN 6300 AND 10000 FT- WET MOUNTAINS ABOVE 10000 FT- TELLER COUNTY/RAMPART RANGE ABOVE 7500 FT/PIKES PEAK BETWEEN 7500 AND 11000 FT-PIKES PEAK ABOVE 11000 FT- CANON CITY VICINITY/EASTERN FREMONT COUNTY- NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY/MONUMENT RIDGE/RAMPART RANGE BELOW 7500 FT- COLORADO SPRINGS VICINITY/SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY/RAMPART RANGE BELOW 7400 FT-PUEBLO AND VICINITY/PUEBLO COUNTY BELOW 6300 FT- WALSENBURG VICINITY/UPPER HUERFANO RIVER BASIN BELOW 7500 FT- TRINIDAD VICINITY/WESTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY BELOW 7500 FT- 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- 1205 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL...EAST CENTRAL...SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST COLORADO. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON OVER THE SOUTHEAST PLAINS OF COLORADO. ALTHOUGH SEVERE WEATHER ACTIVITY WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS ALL OF THE SOUTHEAST PLAINS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...THE BEST CHANCE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL BE ALONG THE PALMER DIVIDE AND NORTHERN SLOPES OF THE RATON RIDGE. THE PRIMARY THREATS OF THESE STORMS WILL BE HAIL THE SIZE OF GOLF BALLS AND WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH. AN ISOLATED TORNADO WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS ALL OF THE PLAINS...ESPECIALLY ALONG THE PALMER DIVIDE AND NORTHERN SLOPES OF THE RATON RIDGE. A MID LEVEL SHORTWAVE IS ALREADY INTERACTING WITH AN UNSTABLE ATMOSPHERE WHICH IS CURRENTLY OVER THE SOUTHEAST MOUNTAINS AND HIGH VALLEYS. THE LOW CLOUDS ACROSS THE PLAINS WILL CONTINUE TO ERODE THROUGH THE EARLY AFTERNOON WITH INSTABILITY ON THE INCREASE. STRONG WIND SHEAR CURRENTLY IN PLACE WILL ALLOW FOR A FEW SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP. THIS ACTIVITY WILL LAST INTO THE EVENING HOURS. OVER THE MOUNTAINS...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED. BRIEF PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN AND HAIL UP TO 1/2 INCH IN DIAMETER WILL BE POSSIBLE. ALL THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF DEADLY CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THERE WILL BE A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS EACH DAY. THE PRIMARY THREATS FROM STORMS OVER THE MOUNTAINS WILL BE LIGHTNING AND WIND GUSTS TO 40 MPH. OVER THE PLAINS...STORMS COULD BE SEVERE...PRODUCING QUARTER SIZE HAIL AND WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. ON SATURDAY...THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE PLAINS COULD BE ESPECIALLY STRONG. A PASSING UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE...COMBINED WITH DEEP MOISTURE AND STRONG WIND SHEAR COULD RESULT IN TORNADIC SUPERCELLS. THESE STORMS COULD PRODUCE A TORNADO...IN ADDITION TO HAIL OVER 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER AND DOWNBURST WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER CONDITIONS THAT MEET REPORTING CRITERIA FOR SPOTTERS WILL BE LIKELY OVER THE SOUTHEAST PLAINS AFTER 2 PM THIS AFTERNOON AND LASTING INTO THE EVENING HOURS. 31/27
In the hours before
Local storm report, Jun 11, 5:05 PM MDT, 1 hour 30 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
505 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0501 PM HAIL 7 NNE BOONE 38.34N 104.21W
06/11/2009 M1.50 INCH PUEBLO CO AMATEUR RADIO
&&
RMGLocal storm report, Jun 11, 5:12 PM MDT, 1 hour 23 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
512 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0340 PM HAIL 3 N PUEBLO RESERVOIR 38.30N 104.75W
06/11/2009 M1.00 INCH PUEBLO CO NWS EMPLOYEE
&&
ROSELocal storm report, Jun 11, 5:21 PM MDT, 1 hour 14 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
521 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0520 PM HAIL 5 WNW FOWLER 38.15N 104.11W
06/11/2009 M0.75 INCH PUEBLO CO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
PGWLocal storm report, Jun 11, 6:02 PM MDT, 33 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
602 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0500 PM HAIL 10 ENE BOONE 38.31N 104.09W
06/11/2009 M2.50 INCH PUEBLO CO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
RMGLocal storm report, Jun 11, 6:22 PM MDT, 13 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
622 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0615 PM HAIL 1 W ROCKY FORD 38.05N 103.74W
06/11/2009 M1.00 INCH OTERO CO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
RMGLocal storm report, Jun 11, 6:26 PM MDT, 9 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
626 PM MDT THU JUN 11 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0625 PM HAIL W ROCKY FORD 38.05N 103.73W
06/11/2009 M0.88 INCH OTERO CO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
RMGThe air that afternoon
The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.
Denver, CO (KDNR), 00:00Z
0.6 hours before the tornado, 187 km from the path. June 12, 2009.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 27 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -61 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 941 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1774 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 38 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 8 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 18 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 34 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.3
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 8.3 K/km
Denver, CO (KDNR), 12:00Z
11.4 hours after it, 187 km from the path. June 12, 2009.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 33 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -130 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 966 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 49 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 8 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 12 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 112 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 5.3 K/km
The surface observations
La Junta Municipal (LHX), 17 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 00:00 UTC |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Pueblo radar (KPUX), 65 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 00:33 UTC.
Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track
Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2009 tornado in ColoradoEvery tornado in Colorado since 1950Warnings in force in Colorado nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of June 11, 2009
5 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.