Storms cause major damage in metro Denver

Powerful thunderstorms with rain, hail, wind, and lightning caused major damage in some parts of metro Denver late Monday and early Tuesday. Trees and power lines fell onto roads in west metro Denver.

People reported broken windows at homes and businesses, and there were a few minor injuries.


27,000 customers were without power as of 8:00 a.m. Tuesday. Crews worked through the night to restore power to 50,000 homes and businesses that went dark during the storm which packed winds of 60 miles per hour in places such as Arvada and 70 miles per hour in Lochbuie northeast of metro Denver. Xcel Energy expected to have power restored to almost all customers by 11:00 p.m. Tuesday.

Traffic lights were out as of 1:00 p.m. at West 38th Avenue and Kipling Street, West 32nd Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard, and Interstate 70 and Kipling Street. Wheat Ridge police officers were directing traffic at these locations, but there were large traffic backups.

Golf-ball sized hail was reported in Fort Collins. Hail also pummeled parts of the Denver area as road crews brought out snow plows to clear roads. Some neighborhoods flooded from up to an inch of rain that fell in 30 minutes in west Denver and parts of Jefferson, Adams, and Arapahoe counties. The National Weather Service issued flood advisories for the region.

A giant uprooted tree fell and crushed a house at 26th and Newcombe in Lakewood. The family who lives there was not injured, but the man who owns the home said the crushed garage area is very near where his kids were sleeping when the tree fell. He said he heard a loud bang, and then immediately smelled gas. His family left the house through the back, and didn't realize what happened to the house until they came around the front from a neighbor's home. Watch video below:



Residents who suffered damage from the overnight storms should contact their insurance agent or company representative immediately," says Carole Walker, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. "Serious losses will be given priority, so take photographs and document damage, and then make temporary repairs. Be sure to keep any receipts as those will likely be covered as part of your claim settlement."

One of the other hard hit areas appeared to be neighborhoods near Kipling between 44th and 57th Avenues in northwest Wheat Ridge. Police urged motorists to stay away from that area Tuesday morning because of all of the damage and debris. Police spokeswoman Lisa Stigall also asked people to just stay in their homes while officials assessed the damage as the sun came up Tuesday.

Big trees were uprooted on the property of the Kipling Village Apartments at 46th and Kipling. About 100 cars had windows blown out in that area. Window on apartments were also broken, and twisted blinds could be seen hanging in the windows.

The city of Wheat Ridge established a collection point for tree limbs and leaves at 4200 Kipling Street, just northeast of the Wheat Ridge Recreation Center. This is for Wheat Ridge residents only, and proof of residency will be required with a photo I.D. or a utility bill with current address.

Residents of Lakewood can take tree limbs to the Rooney Road Recycling Center free of charge until July 28. It's at 151 South Rooney. Proof of residency in Lakewood will be required.

In Adams County, Fire Station #51 in Brighton, headquarters for the greater Brighton Fire District lost a large portion of its roof during the storm. Chief John Schissler says a 40-foot by 40-foot section of roof was destroked, and there was water damage inside a truck bay.

Tornado warning sirens sounded in those same locations at around 11:00 Monday night. The National Weather Service says a weak tornado touched down briefly in Englewood, but it did not hit any structures. There was also a report of a tornado on the ground near Castle Rock as the storms raced out of the area.

Power outages were widespread across the western suburbs, and tens of thousands of people were still without power as of 7:00 a.m. Tuesday. A power outage closed the Community College of Aurora - Lowry campus. The Dept. of Motor Vehicles office at 1881 Pierce Street in Lakewood and Jefferson County libraries were closed until 12:00 p.m. Tuesday... also because of power outages.

There was a chance of more thunderstorms in the forecast later Tuesday.

Check current conditions here

This summer's severe weather season is more reminiscent of weather patterns in the mid 80's and early 90's, but Colorado is considered "hail alley" and receives more damaging hail than almost anywhere else on earth, according to the Insurance Information Assocation.

The week of severe weather that pounded the south metro Denver area in June caused an estimated $161 million in insured losses, while the most expensive catastrophe in Colorado history swept through the Front Range on July 11, 1990, causing $625 million in hail and wind damage - that's nearly $1 billion in today's dollars.