El Paso County, Colorado

What hazards hit El Paso County most?

The most frequent records are hail reports: 1,911 since 1955. 63% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in June and July. The rank column places the county among Colorado's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has El Paso County had?

NOAA records 97 tornadoes in El Paso County from 1951 to 2023, the strongest rated F3, with 0 deaths and 19 injuries recorded in the county. That is 16th of 63 Colorado counties by days with tornadoes per 1,000 square miles since 1950. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 97 tornadoes whose track touched El Paso County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 97, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Colorado.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in El Paso County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the August 5, 2020 hail (1 injury).

Woman was hit in the wrist at 7 Falls and was injured. Time estimated at 4 PM.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 919400)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for El Paso County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

63% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for El Paso County

FEMA's register lists 20 declarations that include El Paso County: 12 major disasters, 6 emergencies and 2 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for flood (7) and fire (5).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has El Paso County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 201 flood or flash flood records for El Paso County from 1996 to 2025, on 122 days, with 6 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), El Paso County ranks 360th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $6.0 million on 857 claims filed in El Paso County; the most in one year was 207 in 2013. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for El Paso County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates El Paso County Relatively Moderate overall, with an expected annual loss of $213 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with El Paso County

1. El Paso County 3,660
2. Pueblo County 1,704
3. Douglas County 1,563
4. Fremont County 1,503
5. Elbert County 1,270
6. Lincoln County 1,100
7. Teller County 570

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in ColoradoEvery Colorado tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Hail in ColoradoThe state's hail reports, by county, year and month
• The Colorado recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in El Paso CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download El Paso County's FEMA declarations (CSV)20 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis