Colorado landslides and avalanches
Every recorded landslide or avalanche record since 1996 · 43 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 576 landslide and avalanche records in Colorado from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 22 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the April 20, 2013 avalanche in Boulder County and 4 more: 5 deaths. Colorado ranks 3rd of 37 states and territories by count and 2nd of 37 per square mile.
Landslides and avalanches in Colorado, 1996 to 2026
Landslide records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 5761996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 22average
- Deaths
- 128106 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $177Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 202157 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are landslide and avalanche records common in Colorado?
Colorado averages about 22 landslide and avalanche records a year since 2000, 3rd of 37 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2021 (57). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Colorado records 56 landslide and avalanche records since 1996, 2nd of 37 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Colorado have the most landslide and avalanche records?
Per square mile, Ouray County leads Colorado: 90 days with a landslide or avalanche record since 1996, 166.5 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Hinsdale County has the most landslide records (133 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is the slide season in Colorado?
Colorado's landslide and avalanche records by month. The busiest month is August (112 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 63 · Feb 70 · Mar 68 · Apr 29 · May 23 · Jun 15 · Jul 110 · Aug 112 · Sep 21 · Oct 16 · Nov 12 · Dec 37 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest landslide and avalanche records in Colorado?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-04-20 | AvalancheBoulder County and 4 more · forecast zone S & Se Grand / W Central & Sw Boulder / Gilpin / Clear Creek / Summit / N & W Park Counties Above 9000 Feet A large avalanche killed five snowboarders over Loveland Pass. | 5 | 0 | – | |
| 2021-02-01 | AvalancheGunnison County and 3 more · forecast zone Northwestern San Juan Mountains A group of backcountry skiers triggered a large avalanche while on a multi-day trip in the mountains near The Nose, Middle Fork Mineral Creek southeast of Ophir. This was a soft slab avalanche that was 1000 feet wide and ran 1500 vertical feet. Four skiers were caught in the avalanche with 3 fatalities. Please visit ... | 3 | 4 | – | |
| 1999-02-06 | AvalancheGunnison County · forecast zone West Elk And Sawatch Mountains/Taylor Park / W Lake / W Chaffee / Wc To Ec Gunnison A group of 4 college students were caught in an avalanche which was triggered by one of the skiers while traversing a slope just below the summit on Cumberland Pass, which is about 25 miles east-northeast of Gunnison in the Sawatch Mountain Range. The entire slope at the 12,000 foot elevation fractured 6 feet deep and ... | 3 | 1 | – | |
| 2014-05-25 | Debris FlowPlateau City, Mesa County A landslide consisting of about 30 million cubic meters of rock and soil broke loose from the side of the Grand Mesa near the 10,000 foot level and traveled nearly 3 miles down the West Salt Creek drainage. Three ranchers were apparently buried by the landslide which deposited debris over 100 feet deep along the slide ... | 3 | 0 | $31K | |
| 2014-02-15 | AvalancheChaffee County and 2 more · forecast zone Eastern Sawatch Mountains Above 11000 Ft Two skiers were killed and three other skiers were injured in an avalanche which occurred around one mile west of the La Plata parking area and eight miles west of Twin Lakes. The bodies were recovered the day after the avalanche occurred. | 2 | 3 | – | |
| 2023-02-25 | AvalancheArchuleta County and 5 more · forecast zone Southwestern San Juan Mountains Two backcountry skiers unintentionally triggered an avalanche on a northwest-facing slope near Vallecito Reservoir. The avalanche was 12 to 30 inches deep and about 200 feet wide at the crown face. It ran about 300 vertical feet through a burn scar, stumps, small aspens, and thick willows. Both of the skiers were ... | 2 | 2 | – | |
| 2020-12-19 | AvalancheArchuleta County and 5 more · forecast zone Southwestern San Juan Mountains A soft slab avalanche was triggered on the north face of Battleship, southeast of Ophir, Colorado by a group of backcountry skiers after a week long period of light to moderate snowfall. The avalanche was small relative to the path and destructive enough to injure, bury or kill a person. The avalanche reached depths ... | 2 | 1 | – | |
| 2020-02-15 | AvalancheGarfield County and 3 more · forecast zone Flattop Mountains A hard slab avalanche was unintentionally triggered by 3 motorized snow-bikers following a week of heavy, wind blown snow in the South Fork of Dickson Creek, east of Red and White Mountain. The avalanche was 3 to 4 feet in depth, 600 feet wide and debris ran for about 300 vertical feet. The avalanche was described a ... | 2 | 1 | – | |
| 2007-03-13 | AvalancheEagle County and 2 more · forecast zone Gore And Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys Three people were on a backcountry ski vacation near Aspen. They chose to ascend Mount Shimer about 7 miles southeast of Aspen. They were ascending a tree covered, north facing slope near the 12,088 foot level. At approximately 1:50 pm, the lead skier remotely triggered a large avalanche in the bowl to the east. Just ... | 2 | 0 | $1K | |
| 2010-03-19 | AvalancheConejos County and 2 more · forecast zone Upper Rio Grande Valley / Eastern San Juan Mountains Below 10000 Ft Two men were buried and perished when up to 2 1/2 feet of snow slid off a cabin roof 17 miles west of Creede. This was the first instance of a fatal roof avalanche since 1996 in Vail. | 2 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest landslide and avalanche records in Colorado
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-07-29 | Debris FlowShoshone, Garfield County One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $137M | |
| 2021-07-31 | Debris FlowShoshone, Garfield County | 0 | 0 | $27M | |
| 2021-07-22 | Debris FlowShoshone, Garfield County One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $3.6M | |
| 2004-11-25 | Debris FlowEagle County and Garfield County · forecast zone Central Colorado River Basin | 0 | 0 | $2.2M | |
| 2023-05-02 | Debris FlowPaonia, Delta County | 0 | 0 | $1.9M | |
| 2010-03-08 | Debris FlowEagle County and Garfield County · forecast zone Central Colorado River Basin | 0 | 0 | $1.4M | |
| 2021-07-20 | Debris FlowTelluride Airport, San Miguel County One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $817K | |
| 2018-07-08 | Debris FlowOuray County | 0 | 0 | $588K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are landslide and avalanche records becoming more frequent in Colorado?
Colorado's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Colorado | United States | Colorado's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 8 | 98 | 8.2% |
| 2000s | 176 | 790 | 22.3% |
| 2010s | 174 | 1,304 | 13.3% |
| 2020-26 | 218 | 1,224 | 17.8% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent landslide and avalanche records in Colorado
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-07 | AvalancheEagle County and 2 more · forecast zone Gore And Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-22 | AvalancheMoffat County and Routt County · forecast zone Elkhead And Park Mountains | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2026-02-21 | AvalancheGunnison County and 4 more · forecast zone Northwestern San Juan Mountains | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2026-01-09 | AvalancheEagle County and 2 more · forecast zone Gore And Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-10-24 | AvalancheMoffat County and 2 more · forecast zone Central Yampa River Basin | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-14 | Debris FlowDurango, La Plata County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-12 | Debris FlowRangely, Rio Blanco County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-12 | Debris FlowRedstone, Pitkin County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-12 | Debris FlowWoody Creek, Pitkin County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-11 | Debris FlowOphir, San Miguel County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-11 | Debris FlowNorwood Airport, San Miguel County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-11 | Debris FlowGladstone, San Juan County | 0 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for landslide and avalanche records in Colorado
FEMA has declared 7 disasters in Colorado for landslide and avalanche, counting its incident type and declarations that name landslide or mudslide in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 6 were major disasters, the latest on September 1, 2026.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-01 | DR-4944 | Wildfires, Flooding, and Mudslides | 4 |
| 2015-07-16 | DR-4229 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 15 |
| 2013-09-14 | DR-4145 | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 18 |
| 2013-09-12 | EM-3365 | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 15 |
| 1997-08-01 | DR-1186 | Severe Storms, Heavy Rain, Flash Floods, Flooding, Mudslides | 13 |
| 1984-07-27 | DR-719 | Severe Storms, Mudslides, Landslides & Flooding | 15 |
| 1973-07-06 | DR-396 | Flooding & Landslides | 16 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
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