Tornadoes · United States · Colorado · 2023

Unrated tornado, Elba to Akron, Colorado, June 21, 2023

Name: Unrated tornado, Elba to Akron, Colorado, June 21, 2023
Start: 2023-06-21T22:47:00.000Z
End: 2023-06-21T22:48:00.000Z
Location: Elba to Akron, Colorado

From Elba to Akron, this Unrated tornado ran 0.4 miles across Washington County on June 21, 2023, touching down at 4:47 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 mph
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.
Unratedthis tornado
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: Unrated
Date: June 21, 2023
Touchdown: 4:47 PM MDT (22:47 UTC)
Lifted: 4:48 PM MDT (22:48 UTC)
On the ground: 1 minutes
Path length: 0.4 miles (0.7 km)
Path width: 50 yards (46 m)
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
County: Washington County
Touchdown point: 40.050, -103.237
Lift-off point: 40.049, -103.229
Record number: 2306211647-01

The damage survey

4 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS BOU, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF2. The highest wind the damage implies is 118 mph.

Barn destroyed, Power Poles snapped.
Power Poles snapped along Hwy 63

Survey points are preliminary and are the raw material the published rating was built from. Source: NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.

What the Weather Service recorded

Long duration severe weather event across the northeast plains, and most of the Denver metropolitan area beginning during the early afternoon hours. Scores of tornadoes occurred across Washington and Logan counties. Several rounds of hail across the Denver metro, with ping pong ball sized hail in downtown, larger hail up to 2 inches in diameter at concert in Red Rocks Amphitheatre. In all, seven patrons were hospitalized, with 83 treated on scene. A substantial number of attendees suffered welts, bruises and broken fingers trying to protect themselves. Several suffered concussions as well. A total of 33 tornadoes touched down in Washington County, with 3 reported in Logan County. There were reports of at least one home damaged west of Sterling and one commercial building collapse in Sterling. The home was damaged by one of the tornadoes.||Significant flooding and flash flooding also occurred in portions of the plains, including Elbert, Arapahoe, Adams, Logan, Washington and Morgan counties. There were likely several rural roads that flooded due to the heavy rainfall. There was a flood fatality just south of I-70 along Watkins Rd. First responders found two stranded cars swept into a field, but its occupants had either gotten out or had been rescued. The third vehicle ended up west of Watkins and 6th Ave. in what is normally a dry creek bed. South Metro��s water rescue team was then called out to do a water rescue but that operation turned into a recovery by the following morning. Due to flooding, Watkins Road was closed between Interstate 70 and Jewell Ave. Interstate 70 was also closed for several hours until water could recede from flooded underpasses. Minor flooding also occurred in portions of the Denver and the surrounding metro area. Baseball size hail was observed in Washington County. In Clear Creek County, a thunderstorm wind gusts to 68 mph was recorded.

A tornado touched down briefly in an open field. No damage was observed.

A tornado briefly touched down in open country. No damage was observed.

A large tornado with estimated peak winds to 118 mph, snapped power poles as it crossed Highway 63.

A second weaker satellite tornado, formed in close proximity to the EF2 tornado, briefly touched down in open country. No damage was observed.

Another satellite tornado, formed in open country near the EF2 tornado, and eventually wrapped into it. No damage was observed.

A tornado touched down briefly in open country. No damage was observed.

A larger tornado touched down briefly in open country. No damage was observed.

A tornado touched down briefly in open country. No damage was observed.

A tornado touched down in open country. No damage was observed.

A large tornado damaged a farm with a large barn destroyed along with grain bins. A few power poles snapped near this area as well.

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

The warnings

10 minutes of warning. NWS BOU issued a tornado warning for this county at 22:37 UTC, 10 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 23:00 UTC.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 18:36 UTC and running to 02:00 UTC.

Issued (UTC)	Expired	Product	Office
18:36 UTC	02:00 UTC	Tornado Watch	BOU
19:59 UTC	20:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
20:36 UTC	20:55 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
20:39 UTC	21:15 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
21:11 UTC	21:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
21:38 UTC	00:45 UTC	Flood Advisory	BOU
21:42 UTC	22:15 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
21:51 UTC	22:15 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
22:02 UTC	01:15 UTC	Flood Advisory	BOU
22:05 UTC	22:30 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
22:21 UTC	22:45 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
22:22 UTC	22:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
22:37 UTC	23:00 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
22:42 UTC	01:45 UTC	Flash Flood Warning	BOU
22:46 UTC	23:15 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
22:54 UTC	23:15 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
23:10 UTC	23:45 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
23:27 UTC	00:00 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
23:28 UTC	00:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
23:45 UTC	00:15 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
23:52 UTC	00:15 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
00:00 UTC	11:20 UTC	Flood Watch	BOU
00:01 UTC	00:30 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
00:11 UTC	00:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
00:24 UTC	01:15 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
00:26 UTC	01:00 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
00:53 UTC	01:30 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
01:26 UTC	02:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
01:27 UTC	04:30 UTC	Flash Flood Warning	BOU
01:39 UTC	01:54 UTC	Tornado Warning	BOU
01:56 UTC	02:13 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOU
02:38 UTC	05:45 UTC	Flash Flood Warning	BOU
04:24 UTC	13:15 UTC	Flood Warning	BOU

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Enhanced Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 20:00 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

The 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.

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), 12:00Z

10.8 hours before the tornado, 253 km from the path. June 21, 2023.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.

Mixed-layer CAPE: 1238 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -71 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 701 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 834 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 28 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 17 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 196 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 167 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.6
Supercell composite: 8.0
0-3 km lapse rate: 6.0 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), 00:00Z

1.2 hours after it, 253 km from the path. June 22, 2023.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

Mixed-layer CAPE: 433 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -208 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 1829 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1196 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 16 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 58 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 51 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0
0-3 km lapse rate: 6.5 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The Denver radar (KFTG), 116 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 22:44 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.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)	Report	Where	County	Remark
21:05 UTC	TORNADO	6 Ssw Otis	Washington, CO	Chaser reports a brief tornado over open country.
21:42 UTC	HAIL 2.75	8 Ssw Platner	Washington, CO
21:42 UTC	HAIL 2.75	8 Ssw Platner	Washington, CO
21:42 UTC	HAIL 2.75	8 Ssw Platner	Washington, CO
22:10 UTC	TORNADO	3 Nne Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser reports brief tornado.
22:18 UTC	TORNADO	4 Nne Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser reports brief tornado.
22:25 UTC	TORNADO	4 Nne Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser reports brief tornado.
22:26 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Spotter was 7 miles north of Elba with a tornado 1-mile south of their area.
22:26 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Spotter was 7 miles north of Elba with a tornado 1-mile south of their area.
22:28 UTC	TORNADO	4 Nne Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser reports brief rope tornado.
22:28 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Snapped Power Poles along Hwy 63 associated with the large tornado.
22:28 UTC	TORNADO	8 N Elba	Washington, CO	Strongly rotating just a few miles to our north, almost on the ground.
22:28 UTC	TORNADO	8 N Elba	Washington, CO	Strongly rotating just a few miles to our north, almost on the ground.
22:29 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser reports brief satellite tornado associated with EF-2 Tornado.
22:31 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser reports 2nd stronger satellite tornado develops and eventually wraps into main EF-2 Tornado.
22:36 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another tornado developing.
22:37 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another tornado developing west of Hwy 63.
22:39 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows brief tornado which only lasts 30 seconds.
22:40 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another tornado developing.
22:42 UTC	TORNADO	5 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another brief tornado.
22:43 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows a large tornado developing.
22:43 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another large tornado east of previous tornado.
22:45 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows a new tornado developing.
22:45 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another brief tornado to the east of previous.
22:46 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another brief tornado which only lasts 30 seconds.
22:47 UTC	TORNADO	6 N Elba	Washington, CO
22:48 UTC	TORNADO	7.5 S Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows new tornado developing.
22:49 UTC	TORNADO	7 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another large tornado developing.
22:50 UTC	TORNADO	7 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another large tornado developing.
22:51 UTC	TORNADO	7 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows a new tornado.
22:52 UTC	TORNADO	7 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows a new tornado developing.
22:53 UTC	TORNADO	7 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser video shows another tornado developing to the west of the previous tornado with both on the ground at the same time.
22:57 UTC	TORNADO	7 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chasers report large multi vortex tornado 2 miles west of Hwy 63 moving west.
23:15 UTC	TORNADO	6 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	Chaser reports brief tornado.
23:20 UTC	TORNADO	5 Ssw Akron	Washington, CO	This large tornado damaged a farm with a large barn destroyed along with grain bins. A few power poles snapped near this area as well.
23:38 UTC	TORNADO	4 E Willard	Logan, CO
23:38 UTC	TORNADO	4 E Willard	Logan, CO
23:39 UTC	TORNADO	8 E Woodrow	Washington, CO	Chaser reports a tornado.
23:47 UTC	TORNADO	8 E Woodrow	Washington, CO
23:47 UTC	TORNADO	8 E Woodrow	Washington, CO

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the track Every 2023 tornado in Colorado Every tornado in Colorado since 1950 Warnings in force in Colorado now The forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of June 21, 2023

44 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 21	1:33 PM MDT	Unrated	Cheyenne, NE	0.6	50
June 21	1:44 PM MDT	Unrated	Logan, CO	0.5	25
June 21	3:05 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.7	25
June 21	3:35 PM MDT	Unrated	Logan, CO	1.4	25
June 21	4:10 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.3	25
June 21	4:18 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.5	25
June 21	4:25 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.7	50
June 21	4:28 PM MDT	EF2	Washington, CO	1.9	400			$15,000
June 21	4:28 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.2	50
June 21	4:29 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.2	25
June 21	4:31 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	1.6	50
June 21	4:36 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.6	50
June 21	4:37 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	1.0	200
June 21	4:39 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.5	25
June 21	4:40 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.6	25
June 21	4:42 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.3	25
June 21	4:43 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.3	25
June 21	4:43 PM MDT	EF1	Washington, CO	0.9	200
June 21	4:45 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.8	25
June 21	4:45 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.4	50
June 21	4:46 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.9	25
June 21	4:48 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.5	100
June 21	4:49 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.6	25
June 21	4:50 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.8	25
June 21	4:51 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	1.3	25
June 21	4:52 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	1.9	200
June 21	4:53 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.6	25
June 21	4:57 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	4.3	50
June 21	5:15 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.8	50
June 21	6:18 PM CDT	Unrated	Armstrong, TX	0.9	100
June 21	5:20 PM MDT	EF2	Washington, CO	4.5	400
June 21	5:30 PM MDT	EF1	Washington, CO	0.1	14
June 21	5:39 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	3.7	25
June 21	6:14 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.8	50
June 21	6:16 PM MDT	EF2	Washington, CO	4.9	800
June 21	6:35 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	0.5	50
June 21	6:45 PM MDT	Unrated	Washington, CO	1.0	25
June 21	7:50 PM CDT	Unrated	Motley, TX	0.2	30
June 21	7:51 PM CDT	EF3	Matador tornado, TX	9.1	600	4	15
June 21	7:19 PM MDT	EF0	Perkins, SD	1.8	50
June 21	8:36 PM CDT	Unrated	Dickens, TX	0.1	30
June 21	8:37 PM CDT	Unrated	Motley, TX	2.8	100
June 21	7:44 PM MDT	Unrated	Goshen, WY	1.0	50
June 21	9:18 PM CDT	Unrated	Dickens, TX	0.3	50

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.