SPM 06-01-2021: Thunderstorms Across Southern Colorado

Issue Date: Tuesday, June 1, 2021
Issue Time: 9:00 am MDT

Summary

Yesterday was an active day for Southern Colorado and the Central Mountains. Thunderstorms began to develop in the Southwest Slope and San Juan Mountains in the late morning ahead of the trough moving eastward. The main threat from these storms was hail, with several reports of 0.5-1.0 inch hail in Durango and the surrounding area. A flash flood warning was also issued for the 416 burn area in La Plata county after Doppler radar indicated heavy rain over the area. Similarly, a flash flood warning was issued for the Williams Fork burn area in Grand Country. However, no flooding was reported on Monday and while many river gauges are above normal streamflow, none are currently in flood stage.

Heavy rain continued eastward across Southern Colorado through the day, 0.81” was reported near the Spanish Peaks northwest of Trinidad and 0.90” in Boone, CO east of Pueblo. Rainfall rates from these storms remained low enough due to limited instability to prevent flooding. For rainfall estimates in your area, check out our State Precipitation Map below.

Click Here For Map Overview

The map below shows radar-estimated, rainfall gage-adjusted Quantitative Precipitation Estimates (QPE) across Colorado. The map is updated daily during the operational season (May 1 – Sep 30) by 11AM. The following six layers are currently available: 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation, as well as maximum 1-hour, 2-hour and 6-hour precipitation over the past 24 hour period (to estimate where flash flooding may have occurred). The accumulation ending time is 7AM of the date shown in the bottom right corner. Also shown optionally are vulnerable fire burn areas (post 2012), which are updated throughout the season to include new, vulnerable burn areas. The home button in the top left corner resets the map to the original zoom.