Logan County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Logan County: 0.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Every large fire

1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Jul 30, 1997Flash Flood$12.9 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Monsoon moisture continued over the area with thunderstorms drenching the Pawnee National Grasslands, north of Stoneham, with 6 to 8 inches of rainfall. Runoff from the storms eventually turned Pawnee Creek into a huge river. The wall of water, 12 feet high and 200 feet wide made its way downstream flooding the towns of Sterling and Atwood in western Logan County. Highway bridges were washed out, trees uprooted and a portion of Burlington Northern track ripped out. In addition, a 100-ton culvert was torn away and carried downstream approximately 50 feet. In Logan County, 1000 homes and 200 businesses were impacted by the floodwaters as scores of families were evacuated. Some homes…

2. Sep 16, 2013Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The flood crest continued down the South Platte River and caused widespread flooding as it made its way into the communities of Merino, Atwood, Sterling, Illiff, Proctor and Crook. Mandatory evacuations were ordered for those communities threatened by record flooding. The preliminary damage assessment for Logan County indicated 180 residences were affected, with 15 homes completely destroyed. Another 18 homes suffered major damage while 57 had minor damage. There were also 15 mobile homes with minor damage, and 75 accessory structures or private property with minor damage. In addition, 73 miles of asphalt and dirt roads were compromised. All of the main bridges were compromised;…

3. Jun 9, 2004Tornado$1.9 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down in downtown Sterling, causing extensive damage. At least two commercial buildings, including a car dealership, and one college dormitory lost roofs. Several trees were uprooted; one caused major damage to a home when it fell on it. A semi-truck was also knocked on its side. Downed power lines caused scattered electrical outages which affected about 6,000 customers. A total of 150 buildings received some degree of damage. Four families were left homeless and two residents received minor injuries. Some of the damage to property and structures included: $550,000 for damaged vehicles, $500,000 to the county fairgrounds including the stadium and arena, $200,000…

4. Mar 6, 2017Wildfire, Logan County$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   High wind gusts ranging from 60 to 70 mph allowed a grassfire to quickly spread from Logan into extreme parts of southwest Sedgwick and northwest Phillips Counties. The fire started just northeast of Sterling and within eight hours, it had had raced 23 miles across Interstate 76 into Phillips County, toward Haxtun. Officials declared a State of Emergency for Logan County. County officials sent out 900 pre-evacuation notices, and evacuated schools in Fleming, Haxtun and Iliff. Colorado Highway 59 was closed in both directions from Interstate 76 to Haxtun, where 15 to 20 power poles were damaged. The blowing dust and smoke reduced visibilities in the area. The American Red Cross has…

5. Jul 5, 2000Tornado$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A large and destructive tornado accompanied with hail, up to softball size, ripped through eastern Logan County. An 88-year old farmer and his wife received minor injuries when the tornado flattened their home. The elderly man spared from serious injury when the recliner he was sitting in flipped upside down; just before a wall caved in on top of him. The farmer suffered a cracked vertebra and a lacerated hand. In all, five farmsteads were either damaged or destroyed. Several structures were destroyed, including three homes and numerous outbuildings. One modular home was lifted up and dropped 50 feet away from its foundation. Numerous pieces of farm equipment including, machinery,…

6. May 20, 2001High Wind, Logan County$303,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Intense winds developed as a vigorous cold front, accompanied by a line of thunderstorms, spilled over the Cheyenne Ridge and moved rapidly across the Urban Corridor and Northeast Plains. Peak wind gusts to 83 mph (72 kts) downed trees and power lines. Approximately 32,000 Xcel customers in Weld, Boulder, Lafayette, Littleton, central Denver and Aurora were without electricity for up to two hours. Zero visibilities were reported due to blowing dust, dirt and other flying debris. As a result, a multi-vehicle accident occured along U.S. Highway 85, between Greeley and Fort Lupton. Six people were treated for minor injuries. Several vehicles, including semi trailers, were reportedly…

7. May 9, 2015Flood$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous roads were impassable across western Logan County due to excessive runoff from Pawnee Creek and the South Platte River. Road closures included: CR 113 from the Nebraska line to CO 138; CR 72 from CO 113 to CR 51; CR 51 from CR 72 and CR 74; CR 39 from CR 66 to CR 68; CR 49 from CR 72 to CR 74; CR 20 from CR 9 and CR 11; CR 21 and CR 21.5 at CO 14; and CR 37, one half mile north of CR 52.

8. Jun 26, 1999Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Portions of the Northeast Plains were hammered by a variety of severe weather during the evening hours. Large hail, tornadoes, straight-line winds, heavy rain and flooding did extensive damage in Logan, Sedgwick and Phillips Counties. Several tornadoes reportedly touched down. A newly built home was struck 3 miles north of Crook, damaging nearly two thirds of the residence. Tornado touchdowns were also reported in and near Iliff. Several barns, crops, farm equipment, grain bins and fences were either damaged or destroyed. Approximately 80 power lines were downed near Crook along with several trees as large hail and damaging winds moved through the area. Some livestock was also…

9. Jun 21, 2023Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A combination of torrential rain and hail caused flash flooding. Multiple road closures were in effect due to washed out county roads, including County Road 17 south of CO 14.

10. May 24, 2015Flood$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Heavy rain produced more flooding north of Sterling. Evacuations were ordered for Globe Meadows and areas between Globe Street and Pioneer Road due to ditch flooding west of a trailer park. Many farms in the areas reported flooded basements as well as field and roadway flooding.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

108°F2 times, most recently Jul 21, 2005

All-time low

−29°FFeb 8, 1936

Warmest night

79°FJul 27, 2026

Coldest day

−9°FFeb 4, 1989

Wettest day

5.03 inJul 30, 1997

Snowiest day

16.0 in2 times, most recently Nov 27, 1983

Hottest year

1934mean 53.5°F

Coldest year

1929mean 46.1°F

Wettest year

194127.43 in

Driest year

18947.34 in

Snowiest season

96.0 in1983-84

Station Leroy 5 Wsw (USC00054945), 4,461 ft elevation, 13.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 26, 2026; 97.5% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00054945.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.