Home / Colorado / Gunnison

Tornado in Gunnison County, Colorado

Tornado May 29, 2021 · Gunnison County, Colorado

–

Not rated

0.7 mi

Path length

20 yd

Path width

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 20 yards (0.01 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

Not rated. NOAA lists no rating for this tornado. Ratings come from surveying damage, and the National Weather Service now records “EFU” (unknown) when a tornado hit nothing a survey team could rate.

What the National Weather Service wrote

A storm chaser traveling along County Road 12 (Kebler Pass) observed a high elevation landspout tornado near the summit of Purple Mountain. The tornado was estimated to be near 12,600 ft and traveled a short distance along the ridge, before dissipating. Snow could be seen blowing around the base of the rotation as it moved across the ridge.

The wider storm

An upper level disturbance moving southeast across the Central Rockies triggered widespread showers and thunderstorms. Strong surface winds in the vicinity of the West Elk Mountains near Crested Butte Colorado, combined with local terrain features, aided in the spin-up of a short-lived landspout tornado that was captured by a storm chaser along Kebler Pass.

Began near Marble (38.9917, -107.1035).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 952112. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

Tornadoes near your address

See every tornado that passed near a place you know, measured to its path.