How Likely Is a Tornado in Clear Creek County, CO?
Clear Creek County, CO: what NOAA's tornado record says
Clear Creek County has recorded 2 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 38.5 years - our Minimal band. Put another way: Clear Creek County sees more tornado activity than 8% of US counties. Colorado has 64 counties in this dataset; Clear Creek County ranks 48 of them by frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
2 weak and 0 significant tornadoes make up Clear Creek County's 2-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Clear Creek County's rating leads to
Cost nationally: $2,890-$13,280, about $7,645 typical. Colorado has no state rebate program confirmed here; FEMA's underlying 75% cost-share exists nationwide, but applying through a state program is what usually makes it real, and none was found for Colorado this pass.
What a direct hit isn't required for
The storm that misses Clear Creek County outright can still take its power out - outbreak-scale outages across Colorado are common well beyond the tracked path. A battery-backup unit handles that without a generator's setup or fuel.
What this number is, and is not
One caveat before relying on Clear Creek County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 395 square miles, so a single touch counts the same as one in a county a fraction of that size. Weaker pre-1990s tornadoes are also documented as undercounted in NOAA's own record. Clear Creek County has about 9,076 residents.