{"id":21896,"date":"2021-10-17T09:54:59","date_gmt":"2021-10-17T15:54:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/?p=21896"},"modified":"2021-10-19T04:57:35","modified_gmt":"2021-10-19T10:57:35","slug":"october-17-to-october-23-this-week-in-denver-weather-history-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/weather-history\/october-17-to-october-23-this-week-in-denver-weather-history-2\/","title":{"rendered":"October 17 to October 23: This week in Denver weather history"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"This<\/a><\/p>\n

This year Denver is still waiting for its first snowfall but that certainly has not been the case throughout history.\u00a0 Many times in our past we have seen not only snow around this time of October but heavy snow as well, oftentimes damaging in nature.<\/p>\n

15-17<\/p>\n

In 1989\u2026an autumn snowstorm hit metro Denver with 2 to 6 inches of snow.\u00a0 Snowfall totaled 4.4 inches at Stapleton International Airport where the maximum snow depth on the ground was only 3 inches due to melting and north winds gusted to 25 mph on the 15th.\u00a0 The heavy wet snow caused leafy branches to sag onto power lines\u2026resulting in a number of power outages.\u00a0 Five thousand homes were blacked out in Boulder on the 16th.\u00a0 Up to a foot of snow fell in the higher foothills with 19 inches recorded at Echo Lake.<\/p>\n

16-17<\/p>\n

In 1990\u2026strong downslope winds raked the eastern foothills. Wind gusts from 60 to 75 mph were common.\u00a0 Strong winds in metro Denver resulted in wave damage to a dock used to moor several private sail boats at Cheery Creek Reservoir. Damage was confined to the dock and two anchor cables. A northwest wind gust to 43 mph was recorded at Stapleton International Airport.<\/p>\n

17<\/p>\n

In 1878\u2026strong winds reached sustained speeds of 48 mph.<\/p>\n

In 1988\u2026a wind gust to 62 mph was recorded in central Boulder.\u00a0 The strong winds caused a few brief power outages.\u00a0 An old smoldering brush fire in the foothills west of Boulder was re-ignited by the wind gusts.<\/p>\n

In 1994\u2026winds gusted to 85 mph atop Squaw Mountain\u20265 miles south of Idaho Springs.<\/p>\n

In 2006\u2026a potent storm system brought heavy snowfall to the mountains and eastern foothills.\u00a0 Snowfall totals in the foothills included:\u00a0 14 inches at Blackhawk\u202613.5 inches near Idaho Springs\u202613 inches at cabin creek\u202612.5 inches at Aspen Springs and Echo Lake\u202611.5 inches at Georgetown and Rollinsville\u202610.5 inches near Jamestown\u2026and 10 inches at grant and Lake Eldora.\u00a0 Lesser snow amounts\u2026from 4 to 9 inches\u2026were recorded elsewhere in the foothills.\u00a0 Snowfall totaled only 3.5 inches in the Denver Stapleton area.\u00a0 At Denver International Airport\u2026north winds gusted to 31 mph.<\/p>\n

In 2012…A brief but powerful windstorm associated with a fast moving cold front across the Urban Corridor and adjacent plains during in the evening. Peak wind gusts ranging from 58 to 71 mph downed trees and power lines which damaged homes and vehicles. Several temporary structures were also damaged. Approximately fifty thousand were left without power in the Denver…Fort Collins and Greeley areas. Some schools were closed the following day until power could be restored. Around the Denver area…peak wind gusts included: 69 mph in Golden…64 mph at Littleton… 62 mph at Buckley AFB and in Denver…near the intersection of Walnut St. and Interstate 25…and Longmont; 59 mph at Centennial Airport…58 mph at Denver City Park…Highlands Ranch. At Denver International Airport…a peak wind gust to 35 mph was observed from the northwest.<\/p>\n

<\/span>17-19<\/p>\n

In 1908\u2026a moist\u2026heavy\u2026wet snowfall totaled 13.0 inches in downtown Denver over the 3 days.\u00a0 Rain from early morning on the 17th changed to snow by late afternoon and continued through the late morning of the 19th.\u00a0 Due to temperatures in the 30\u2019s and melting\u2026the most snow on the ground was only 5.0 inches at 6:00 pm on the 18th.\u00a0 Northwest to northeast winds were sustained between 12 and 20 mph during the storm.\u00a0 Precipitation totaled 1.82 inches.<\/p>\n

18<\/p>\n

In 1875\u2026the haze was so dense that the mountains were not visible from downtown Denver for most of the day.<\/p>\n

In 1937\u2026a vigorous cold front produced north winds sustained to 32 mph with gusts to 41 mph.\u00a0 Rain and snow totaled 0.16 inch.\u00a0 Post-frontal snowfall of 0.8 inch was the only snowfall of the month.<\/p>\n

In 1960\u2026post-frontal upslope rain changed to snow. Snowfall was 2.2 inches at Stapleton Airport where precipitation (rain and melted snow) totaled 1.58 inches.<\/p>\n

In 1971\u2026wind gusts to 48 mph were recorded in downtown Boulder.\u00a0 West winds gusted to 30 mph at Stapleton International Airport.<\/p>\n

In 1999\u2026heavy snow developed in the foothills west of metro Denver with lesser amounts across the city.\u00a0 Snowfall totals included:\u00a0 7 inches near Nederland\u20266 inches in Boulder\u2026and 5 inches at Chief Hosa.\u00a0 Only 1.2 inches of snow were measured at the site of the former Stapleton International Airport.<\/p>\n

18-23<\/p>\n

In 2003\u2026an extended warm spell resulted in 5 new temperature records.\u00a0 The high temperature of 84 degrees on the 18th equaled the record high for the date.\u00a0 High temperatures of 86 degrees on the 19th\u202683 degrees on the 21st\u2026and 84 degrees on the 22nd were record highs for the dates.\u00a0 Low temperature of 49 degrees on the 23rd was a record high minimum for the date.\u00a0 Low temperatures during the period were in the 40\u2019s and lower 50\u2019s.<\/p>\n

19<\/p>\n

In 1887\u2026northwest winds sustained to 42 mph were recorded in the city.<\/p>\n

In 1982\u20263 to 6 inches of snow fell over northwest metro Denver\u2026including Boulder.\u00a0 Only 1.2 inches of snowfall were recorded at Stapleton International Airport where north winds gusted to 35 mph.\u00a0 This was the first measurable snowfall of the season.<\/p>\n

19-20<\/p>\n

In 1990\u2026an early winter storm dumped heavy snow across metro Denver.\u00a0 Snowfall amounts ranged from 4 to 8 inches in the foothills above 6500 feet elevation\u20264 to 7 inches in the Castle Rock area\u2026and 2 to 5 inches across most of metro Denver and Boulder.\u00a0 Snowfall totaled 3.6 inches at Stapleton International Airport where northwest winds gusting to 48 mph kicked up some blowing dust shortly after a cold frontal passage on the 19th.\u00a0 However\u2026 Temperatures were warm enough to keep most roadways wet and slushy at lower elevations.<\/p>\n

19-23<\/p>\n

In 1906\u2026heavy snowfall totaled 22.7 inches in the city over the 5 days.\u00a0 Rain changed to snow on the evening of the 19th\u2026and snow continued through the late afternoon of the 23rd.\u00a0 The heaviest amount of snowfall\u202616.0 inches\u2026fell from 8:00 pm on the 20th to 8:00 pm on the 22nd.\u00a0 The most snow on the ground was 13.3 inches on the evening of the 23rd.\u00a0 This was the first snow of the season and the only snow of the month.\u00a0 Winds during the storm were from the north at sustained speeds of 20 to 30 mph each day. Temperatures during the storm were generally in the 20\u2019s.<\/p>\n

20<\/p>\n

In 1878\u2026between 3:00 pm and 4:00 pm wind speeds averaged 48 mph with a maximum 1 minute sustained velocity to 96 mph at both 3:27 pm and 3:48 pm in downtown Denver.\u00a0 This is the highest sustained wind speed ever recorded in the city.<\/p>\n

In 1986\u2026a rare late October thunderstorm produced 3\/4 inch diameter hail at Centennial Airport.\u00a0 Hail piled up 2 1\/2 inches deep\u2026causing some street flooding in south metro Denver.<\/p>\n

20-21<\/p>\n

In 2007\u2026a storm system brought heavy snow to the southern Denver suburbs as well as the palmer divide south of Denver.\u00a0 Storm totals included:\u00a0 7.5 inches near Castle Rock\u2026Lone Tree and Greenwood Village\u2026with 6.5 inches at Elizabeth.\u00a0 Snow drifts up to 2 feet deep were observed 6 miles south-southwest of Elizabeth. In the Denver Stapleton area\u20262.0 inches of snow was observed.<\/p>\n

20-22<\/p>\n

In 1936\u20265.5 inches of snow fell over downtown Denver. Most of the snow\u20264.5 inches\u2026fell on the 20th.<\/p>\n

21<\/p>\n

In 1920\u2026the rare event of snow from a thunderstorm occurred in the city during the evening.\u00a0 Brilliant flashes of lightning and loud peals of thunder were first noted at 7:35 pm.\u00a0 Light rain began falling at 8:30 pm\u2026and light moist snow began falling a few minutes later.\u00a0 Some soft hail was also seen falling with the rain and snow\u2026but both melted almost as fast as they fell.\u00a0 The hail only continued for a few minutes\u2026and the rain and snow ceased about 9:40 pm. The snowfall was the first to occur in Denver this season.\u00a0 The amount of precipitation at the station measured only 0.01 inch\u2026but heavier amounts were reported from other parts of the city.\u00a0 Snowfall was only a trace.<\/p>\n

21-22<\/p>\n

In 1978\u2026heavy rain on the 21st changed to snow by daybreak on the 22nd and continued the rest of the day.\u00a0 This was the first measurable snowfall of the season\u2026but totaled only 1.7 inches at Stapleton International Airport where east winds gusted to 29 mph.\u00a0 While only a trace of snow covered the ground\u2026precipitation totaled 1.27 inches.<\/p>\n

22<\/p>\n

In 1878\u2026winds were sustained to 42 mph.<\/p>\n

In 1887\u2026the first measurable snow of the season occurred\u2026 Ending the longest snow-free period in Denver\u2026232 days\u2026 Since the last snow on March 5th.<\/p>\n

In 1947\u2026the first snow of the season totaled only 1.6 inches.\u00a0 Post-frontal north winds caused temperatures to plunge from a high of 60 degrees at midnight to a low of only 30 degrees 24 hours later.\u00a0 This was the only snow of the month.<\/p>\n

In 1985\u2026high winds gusting from 60 to 80 mph buffeted the Front Range foothills.\u00a0 The strongest reported wind gust was 89 mph in eastern Boulder.\u00a0 A treehouse east of Boulder was set on fire by a downed power line.\u00a0 Two people in Boulder were injured.\u00a0 A woman broke her arm when the strong winds knocked her to the ground.\u00a0 A carpenter in the city suffered a severely cut hand while he was trying to repair a roof that was being torn from a building.\u00a0 At Stapleton International Airport\u2026northwest winds gusted to 41 mph.<\/p>\n

In 2001\u2026west-northwest winds gusting as high as 54 mph warmed the temperature to a high of 70 degrees at Denver International Airport.<\/p>\n

22-23<\/p>\n

In 1914\u2026post-frontal rain changed to snow.\u00a0 Precipitation totaled 2.72 inches\u2026most of which was in the form of moist snow which melted as it fell in the business section of the city.\u00a0 About 3 inches of snow was measured on lawns in the residential areas on the morning of the 24th.\u00a0 Official snowfall totaled only 0.4 inch downtown\u2026 But an estimated 8.0 inches of snow melted as it fell. North to northeast winds were sustained to 29 mph with gusts to 30 mph on both days.<\/p>\n

In 1975\u2026a vigorous cold front moving across metro Denver followed by strong northeast winds gusting to 52 mph produced billows of blowing dust and plunged the temperature 21 degrees in an hour.\u00a0 The surface visibility was reduced to 1\/4 mile in blowing dust at Stapleton International Airport.\u00a0 The temperature cooled from a daily record high of 81 degrees to a low of 38 degrees by day\u2019s end.\u00a0 The first snowfall of the season totaled 2.7 inches on the 23rd.\u00a0 This was the only measurable snow of the month at Stapleton International Airport.<\/p>\n

In 1995\u2026heavy snow fell on the Palmer Ridge south of Denver and in the foothills west of Denver where snow amounts ranged from 4 to 8 inches.\u00a0 Sedalia\u2026south of Denver\u2026 Received 8 inches of snow.\u00a0 Winds strengthened on the plains and produced blizzard conditions\u2026reducing surface visibilities to less than 1\/4 mile.\u00a0 I-70 was closed from just east of Denver at Gun Club Road to the Kansas border.\u00a0 Ten inches of snow fell at Strasburg east of Denver where north winds at sustained speeds of 35 to 45 mph with gusts as high as 60 mph produced 2 to 4 foot drifts.\u00a0 Snowfall totaled only 2.2 inches at the site of the former Stapleton International Airport.\u00a0 North winds gusted to 51 mph at Denver International Airport.<\/p>\n

23<\/p>\n

In 1876\u2026skies were fair\u2026but winds were sustained to 48 mph.<\/p>\n

In 1942\u2026a major storm dumped 10.2 inches of snow over downtown Denver.\u00a0 Post-frontal northeast winds were sustained to only 13 mph.<\/p>\n

In 1955\u2026the first snowfall of the season and the only measurable snow of the month dumped 4.1 inches of snow on Stapleton Airport.\u00a0 This was the single heaviest October snowfall in 13 years since 1942.\u00a0 The storm also brought the first sub-freezing temperatures of the season when the temperature dipped to a low of 25 degrees.<\/p>\n

In 1956\u2026southwest winds gusted to 53 mph and produced some blowing dust at Stapleton Airport.<\/p>\n

In 1967\u2026a northwest wind gust to 51 mph was recorded at Stapleton International Airport.\u00a0 In downtown Boulder\u2026 Winds were sustained at 20 mph with gusts in excess of 40 mph.<\/p>\n

In 1981\u2026strong winds occurred in the foothills.\u00a0 Wind gusts to 70 mph were reported at Wondervu.<\/p>\n

23-24<\/p>\n

In 1887\u2026the first measurable snowfall of the season totaled 3.1 inches.\u00a0 North winds to 20 mph were recorded on the 23rd.\u00a0 This was the only measurable snow of the month.<\/p>\n

In 1932\u2026post-frontal snowfall from the late evening of the 23rd continued through the late afternoon of the 24th and totaled 6.2 inches.\u00a0 Southeast winds were sustained to 25 mph with gusts to 26 mph on the 23rd.\u00a0 Temperatures cooled from a high of 68 degrees on the 23rd to a low of 25 degrees on the 24th\u2026the coldest reading of the month that year.\u00a0 Many trees that had not shed their leaves became heavily laden by the wet snow.\u00a0 Many branches were broken\u2026 And a few trees toppled under the weight of the snow.\u00a0 The landscape became one of rare beauty.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This year Denver is still waiting for its first snowfall but that certainly has not been the case throughout history.\u00a0 Many times in our past we have seen not only snow around this time of October but heavy snow as well, oftentimes damaging in nature. 15-17 In 1989\u2026an autumn snowstorm hit metro Denver with 2 … Continue reading October 17 to October 23: This week in Denver weather history<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63],"tags":[81,106,62,61,741],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21896"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21896"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21896\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21897,"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21896\/revisions\/21897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thorntonweather.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}