Colfax County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Colfax County: 1.
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.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Volcanoes within 100 miles

1. U.S. volcanoes within 100 miles, from the USGS Volcano Hazards Program. The threat category is the USGS 2018 National Volcanic Threat Assessment, which ranks volcanoes by how hazardous their past eruptions were and how many people and how much infrastructure lie near them. It is not a forecast of eruption.

USGS Volcano Hazards Program, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by USGS Conterminous (225), NASA (1).

1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. May 1, 2022Wildfire, East Slopes Sangre De Cristo Mountains$100 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fire continued to devastate the area as it grew significantly during the month of May. The wildfire at the end of April was at 103,908 acres, but continued strong winds across the area throughout the month of May allowed the wildfire to spread rapidly. Within the first three days of May, the fire grew over 40,000 acres to a total of 145,854 acres with only 20% containment. During this time, the fire pushed northward toward Mora and northwest toward Las Tusas and Sapello. It also pushed towards Las Vegas, prompting evacuation orders for the western side of the city. By May 16, the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire grew to 298,060 acres, officially…

2. Apr 19, 2022Wildfire, East Slopes Sangre De Cristo Mountains$25.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   While daily rounds of widespread high fire danger persisted across northern and central New Mexico throughout the month of April, conditions were primed for rapid wildfire growth. The Calf Canyon Fire was sparked on April 19, 2022, near Gallinas Canyon. The wildfire experienced its most rapid growth on April 22nd as a historic and catastrophic fire weather pattern developed across New Mexico. With several hours of widespread 60 to 80 mph wind gusts, the Calf Canyon Fire exploded. This prompted the National Weather Service Albuquerque Office to issue a rare Fire Weather Warning for mandatory evacuations across western San Miguel and Mora counties. By the morning of April 23rd, it…

3. May 1, 2022Wildfire, East Slopes Sangre De Cristo Mountains$11.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Cooks Peak Fire started on April 17, 2022 on private land north of Ocate. As a persistent windy pattern continued through the month of April, the fire grew rapidly to 59,063 acres. At the start of the month of May, Philmont Scout Ranch Back Country west of New Mexico State Road 21 in Colax County were given mandatory evacuation orders while in Mora County, residents of Los LeFebres, Los Huerros, and residents east of County Road 009 and north of New Mexico Highway 120 were also given evacuation orders. Firefighters were able to make significant progress on the Cooks Peak Fire during the early part of May. By May 3rd, the wildfire was 59,359 acres with 72 percent containment.…

4. Apr 6, 2022Wildfire, East Slopes Sangre De Cristo Mountains$10.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   On April 6, 2022, a prescribed burn was started 12 miles northwest of Las Vegas, but due to windy conditions in place, the fire soon got out of control and spread rapidly. By April 13th, the Hermits Peak Fire grew to 7,900 acres with 10 percent containment. On April 22nd, the wildfire experienced rapid growth as a historic and catastrophic fire weather pattern developed across New Mexico. Despite 91 percent containment, the wildfire experienced rapid growth and combined with the nearby Calf Canyon Fire. Together, these two wildfires burned over 42,000 acres. As very windy conditions persisted through the remainder of April, the Hermits Peak Fire continued to spread rapidly, and by…

5. Dec 15, 2021High Wind, Northern Sangre De Cristo Mountains$2.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The weather station at Taos Ski Valley measured about twelve hours of wind speeds in excess of 58 mph with a peak wind gust of 103 mph. These high winds resulted in significant tree damage across Taos Ski Valley with numerous trees downed and splintered. A couple hundred acres of trees were completely flattened near the Wheeler Peak Condominiums. Ten to twenty acres of trees were downed at the El Funko area while another twenty acres of trees were downed near lift four at the ski resort. The Enchanted Forest Ski Site in Red River also reported numerous downed trees in their area. Taos County declared a State of Emergency due to the widespread wind damage. Damages are a rough estimate.

6. Jul 25, 1996Tornado$1.7 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado destroyed 11 homes and 7 business in Cimarron. Another 43 structures were damaged. Among the building destroyed was the Post Office which was sliced by the air-borne frame of a mobile home. Of the 5 injuries, 2 were serious, requiring hospitalization. All injuries occurred in mobile homes or portable buildings without permanent foundations. A funnel cloud, which went unreported, was observed by deputies for about 20 minutes. The tornado developed as convection moved over a horizontal shear axis created by southeast surface winds and northwest winds aloft above the foothills located just northwest of Cimarron.

7. Aug 2, 2018Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread significant damage from flash flooding on the Ute Park burn scar. NMDOT closed U.S. Highway 64 due to flooding and debris over the roadway. A total of 28 homes were impacted, some were the same as the ones impacted on July 13th. Six homes were completely cut-off from access due to several feet of mud, rocks, and debris. Damage amounts are estimated.

8. Sep 12, 2013Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A bridge was washed away northeast of Maxwell near county road A-7 with severe bank erosion along the Canadian River. A large culvert was washed out south of the Raton Crews Airport along county road A-6. Severe bank erosion also occurred in this area of the Canadian River and Tinaja Creek. Numerous other culvert and road wash outs were reported across the county.

9. Apr 2, 2012High Wind, Far Northeast Highlands$375,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An estimated 50 power poles were toppled by strong northerly winds.

10. Jun 21, 2004Hail$300,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Storms which dumped large hail on Raton with considerable automobile damage and breakage of building windows moved east into Union County where at least one brief tornado was reported.

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

102°F3 times, most recently Jul 27, 2026

All-time low

−31°FJan 12, 1963

Warmest night

68°F2 times, most recently Jul 19, 2022

Coldest day

2°FJan 12, 1963

Wettest day

5.60 inJun 17, 1965

Snowiest day

8.8 inApr 3, 1964

Hottest year

2012mean 54.0°F

Coldest year

1948mean 47.0°F

Wettest year

196522.94 in

Driest year

19568.02 in

Station Raton Municipal Crews Field Airport (USW00023052), 6,353 ft elevation, 8.8 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 26, 2026; 92.4% 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 USW00023052.
• 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.
• Volcanoes USGS Volcano Hazards Program, U.S. volcanoes and 2018 threat assessment.
• Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
• 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.