High Wind — Eastern Larimer and Northwestern Weld Counties, Colorado

1999-02-17 to 1999-02-18 · Eastern Larimer and Northwestern Weld Counties, Colorado

Wider weather episode

Following the passage of the storm system, damaging bora winds developed in and near the Front Range Foothills. Peak wind reports included: 90 mph (78 kts) at the Gamow Tower on the Boulder Campus, 79 mph (69 kts) at the NCAR Mesa Lab and the National Wind Technology Center (NWTC), 7 miles west of Broomfield, 75 mph (65 kts) at Carter Lake, 72 mph (63 kts) at Blue Mountain and Jefferson County Airport and 71 mph (61 kts), 5 miles south of Fort Collins.Downed power lines caused major outages in Evergreen, Idaho Springs, Golden and Lakewood. The outage affected at least 10,000 residents. In Golden, the wind toppled a "lightning static protection" line atop a 70-ft, 230,000 volt distribution tower. The downed line, sparked a small grass fire just east of the Lookout Mountain Youth Services Center. The fire burned a path approximately 100 yards wide and a third of a mile long before it was contained.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5681798. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.