SPM 06-13-2018: Overnight Thunderstorms Rumbled East of the Mountains

Issue Date: Wednesday, June 13th, 2018
Issue Time: 10:20 AM MDT

Summary:

All was mainly quiet across Colorado yesterday during the daylight hours, with high pressure ridging and sunshine dominating the state. As the day turned to night and early morning, a surge of moisture from the southeast invaded eastern Colorado and kicked off isolated thunderstorms across portions of the Urban Corridor, Palmer Ridge, Northeast Plains, Southeast Plains, and Raton Ridge. Most were run-of-the-mill, producing plenty of lightning, periods of light-to-moderate rainfall, gusty winds, and small hail. However, one storm was able to outperform the rest, bringing large hail to El Paso County between Midnight and 2:00 AM. Take a look at some of the larger hail reports from this isolated storm:

– 3.00 inch diameter hail: 3 miles WSW Peterson AFB
– 2.50 inch diameter hail: Fountain, 2 miles NE of Fountain
– 2.00 inch diameter hail: 2 miles SE of Security, 2 miles WSW Peterson AFB
– 1.75 inch diameter hail: Fountain
– 1.50 inch diameter hail: 3 miles ESE of Security, 3 miles W Peterson AFB
– Plus a handful of 1 inch and 1.25 inch reports.

No flash flooding was reported yesterday. For a look at precipitation estimates in your area, please see 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 6AM of the date shown in the bottom right corner. Also shown optionally are fire burn areas since 2012. The home button in the top left corner resets the map to the original zoom.

Note: We have identified a possible underestimation in QPE over the southwest part of the state. We are working to on this issue, and will provide an update as soon as possible.