Remembering The 7th Anniversary Of Colorado's Last Killer Tornado
DENVER (CBS4) - It's hard to believe but Friday marks seven years since a killer tornado hit the town of Windsor in Northern Colorado.
The EF-3 twister touched down during the late morning hours in a field northeast of Platteville in Weld County and traveled northwest for 39 miles.
It lifted six miles northwest of Wellington in Larimer County and left a damage path that at times was almost a mile wide.
The tornado left extensive damage near Missile Silo Park and on the east side of Windsor.
One person was killed and 78 others were injured.
Tractor trailers were flipped along Highway 85 and 15 railroad cars were overturned on nearby tracks.
Over 200 power poles were snapped or blown down, knocking out power to roughly 60,000 people.
Hail the size of baseballs also accompanied the storm along with a smaller EF-1 tornado near the town of Dacono.
Nearly 1,000 homes were damaged and roughly 300 others either sustained significant damaged or were destroyed.
The Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association reported about $1 million of damage to transmission lines.
Private insurance claims totaled nearly $150 million, making it one of Colorado's top 10 natural disasters.
Meteorologist Chris Spears writes about stories related to weather and climate in Colorado. Check out his bio or follow him on Twitter @ChrisCBS4.
