Colorado Severe Weather Awareness Week

Colorado Severe Weather Awareness Week: April 10-16, 2022

Severe Weather Awareness Week in Colorado is April 10-16 and WFO Pueblo, along with the other NWS offices covering Colorado, will take part by sharing safety and preparedness information on various hazards throughout the week. Below are a list of items that WFO Pueblo will be sharing during the week.

Tom Magnuson - Colorado Springs

Watches and Warnings
Tornadoes and Tornado Safety
Flood and Flash Flood Safety
Damaging Winds and Large Hail
Lightning and Wildfires

Watches and Warnings:

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman Oklahoma forecasts the risk for severe weather across the country several days in advance. These outlooks help to inform you if there is a risk for severe weather. If severe weather becomes likely, a watch can be issued, alerting you to the increased risk for severe weather. If severe weather is possible in your area, you should have a plan on where to go for shelter and be ready to act if severe weather were to occur.


Storm Prediction Center Outlooks	Tornado Watch/Warning Information	Thunderstorm Watch	Thunderstorm Warning

Tornadoes and Tornado Safety

Colorado is no stranger to tornadoes. Tornadoes have occurred in most areas of the state, but historically most of the tornadoes occur along and east of Interstate 25 where heat and moisture in the lower atmosphere are often more abundant. Tornadoes can occur at every hour of the day, but most occur between the afternoon and evening hours. An easy phrase to remember for tornado safety is to Get In, Get Down, and Cover Up. Get inside a sturdy building, get down to the lowest floor or most interior room, and cover your head.


Tornado Safety - Home	Tornado Safety - Apartment	Tornado Safety - Mobile Home	Tornado Watch


Safe Place Tornado	Tornado Safe Places	Tornado Sheltering	Tornado Overpass

Flood and Flash Flood Safety

Flash flooding refers to a dangerous sudden rise in water along a creek, river, or a normal dry land area. Flash floods result from heavy rainfall, sudden breaks in river ice jams, and dam or levee failures. Flash floods can occur within a few minutes or hours...and can move at surprisingly high speeds, striking with little warning. Flash floods are quite destructive because of the force of the moving water, and the debris that accumulates in flood waters, such as trees and boulders, which can destroy roadways, bridges, and buildings. Nearly half of all flash flood fatalities are vehicle related. Do not enter a flooded roadway, instead Turn Around Don't Drown.


Flood Watch vs. Warning	Burn Scars	Flood Waters	Flood Barricades

Water Depth

Damaging Winds and Large Hail

Damaging winds and large hail are major risks in Colorado. Tornadoes are often the headline story, but damaging straight-line winds can also injure and kill animals and humans. These winds are usually caused by an area of air within a storm which is quickly cooled by precipitation, or by the evaporation of precipitation. This area of cooled air, which is heavier than the surrounding air, accelerates downward. As the cool air slams into the ground, it spreads out from the area of impact. This process, in extreme cases, can result in wind speeds exceeding 100 mph. Meteorologists call these winds downbursts. Hail often occurs in Colorado. Hail forms within storms as liquid water freezes in the cold mid and upper levels of the storms. The hailstones are kept aloft by strong updraft winds for a time, and then cascade to the ground. In Colorado, hailstones vary from pea size, around 3/8 of an inch in diameter, to softball size, around 4 1/2 inches in diameter.


Severe Risk Categories	Severe Weather Hazards	Severe Weather


Hail Formation	Hail Size Chart

Lightning and Wildfires

Thunderstorms produce some of the most dangerous weather on Earth, including tornadoes, flash floods, large hail, and destructive straight-line winds. However, the most dangerous aspect of thunderstorms in Colorado is usually lightning. Lightning usually kills and injures more people in Colorado than any other thunderstorm hazard. In addition to producing human casualties, lightning also ignites most forest and rangeland fires in the Centennial State. Many of these wildfires occur when lightning is generated from thunderstorms which produce little or no rainfall. This type of lightning is referred to as dry lightning. The safest thing for you to do, if you are outside and lightning or thunder begins to occur, is to immediately get inside a substantial fully-enclosed building. The best defense to protect yourself against a lightning strike is to plan ahead and avoid being caught where you might be vulnerable. Check the weather forecasts prior to venturing out, especially if you are heading into the mountains.


Lightning - Thunder Roars	Lightning Safety	Camping Safety