Flash Flood — Mesa, Colorado

2023-08-02 · near Fruita, Mesa, Colorado

Event narrative

The Colorado Department of Transportation reported flash flooding on Colorado Highway 340 at the west entrance to the Colorado National Monument. Up to 6 inches of water ran across the road as a result of heavy from thunderstorms. Additionally, some large boulder collapsed on the road as well as some mud. The superintendent of the Colorado National Monument also reported several inches of water flooded the Visitor's Center. Luckily, there were no injuries or damage to cars reported during the event. The rain gauge, located across from the Visitor's Center, recorded 0.90 inches of rain in 20 minutes.

Wider weather episode

Abundant monsoon moisture remained across Western Colorado. This led to another round of showers and thunderstorms across much of the region. Storms were slow moving and produced heavy rain. As a result of the heavy rain, some flash flooding and debris flows occurred in Mesa and Eagle counties. Additionally, gusty outflow winds in excess of 58 mph occurred across portions of the Western Slope. The passage of a weak trough across northwest Colorado resulted in some stronger storms. One storm in Routt County produced a funnel cloud.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (39.1194, -108.7311)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1105493. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.