Debris Flow — Rio Blanco, Colorado

2025-08-26 · near Rio Blanco, Rio Blanco, Colorado

Event narrative

At approximately 1:18 PM MDT, a report reached NWS Grand Junction that heavy rain over the Lee Burn Scar had triggered a debris flow over Rio Blanco County Road 5 in the same area that had run on August 24th. This time, no vehicles were trapped and no other damage occurred, nor were any injuries or fatalities reported.

Wider weather episode

Unusually rich monsoonal moisture was in place on the morning of August 26th, with precipitable water close to 1.00 inch across eastern Utah and western Colorado. A jet streak moving in aloft brought not only additional moisture, but some extra lift as well. In addition, daytime heating on the complex terrain in this region help to spur on afternoon convection. As a result, widespread shower and thunderstorm activity developed during the afternoon, producing localized very heavy rain and high rainfall rates.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (39.8190, -108.1490)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1291260. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.