The Colorado Climate Center (CCC) released its monthly climate summary for August 2026 on Sept. 9, confirming what the state had been sweating through for weeks.
August 2026 was the hottest month ever recorded statewide, capping off the hottest climatological summer (June-August) in Colorado’s 132-year record as well.
According to the CCC, August was the third record-breaking month of 2026, joining February and March as the warmest on record, and marked the state’s 15th consecutive month of above-average temperatures.
The CCC said, statewide, August ran 5.4°F above the 20th-century average and 4.2°F above the more recent 1991-2020 average, with the Front Range, mountains, and Western Slope all posting their single warmest August on record.
Precipitation was more of a mixed bag, however; usual for late summer.
Some areas in Colorado caught heavy thunderstorm downpours and finished above average while southern Colorado, including the San Luis Valley, typically the wettest place in the state during August, had one of its driest Augusts on record.
Notable highlights in August:
- Statewide rank: 1st-warmest August on record (132 years); tied for 4th-warmest of all 1,584 months on record; 47th-driest.
- Hottest climatological summer (June-August) on record statewide. It was 0.7°F warmer than the previous record, set in 2012.
- Maximum daily temperature: 110°F at Las Animas (Aug. 8), tying the state’s all-time temperature extreme.
- Minimum daily temperature: 23°F at Cowdrey (Aug. 6).
- Maximum daily precipitation: 3.92″ near Kiowa (Aug. 15).
- 2026 has now had seven statewide heat waves, the most in a single year since records began in 1951.
- A wind-driven grass fire near Greeley on Aug. 8 killed a woman and a dog and severely burned another man.
- Flash flooding and debris flows in Beulah on Aug. 16 killed one man near the Aspen Acres burn scar.
A record-hot summer, not just a record-hot month
The CCC’s summer (June-August) breakdown shows August wasn’t an isolated spike, tt was the culmination of the hottest three-month stretch Colorado has ever recorded.
Statewide average temperature ran 4.9°F above the 20th-century average and 3.4°F above the 1991-2020 average, edging out the previous record summer of 2012 by 0.7°F. The western two-thirds of the state had their outright hottest summer on record; even the eastern Plains, which fared relatively better, still landed in the top 10.
Precipitation-wise, summer 2026 ranked as the 22nd-driest on record statewide, with central and southern Colorado especially parched — some locations there ranked among their 10 driest summers ever.
A record year for heat waves
August added three more four-day heat waves to the state’s tally — Aug. 1-4, Aug. 9-12, and Aug. 20-23 — bringing 2026’s total to seven, the most of any year since heat wave tracking began in 1951. Three of the eight hottest four-day periods ever recorded statewide have now occurred this year alone, including the single hottest stretch on record (July 25-28).
August also produced individually brutal days: the three warmest August days on record, and six of the ten warmest since 1951, all fell this month. Aug. 3, 9, and 10 stood out in particular, combining record daytime highs with unusually warm overnight lows that gave the state’s residents and livestock little relief after dark.
Drought holds steady, with pockets easing and worsening
As of Sept. 1, roughly 89% of Colorado remained in some form of drought, down slightly from about 91% at the start of August. Extreme to exceptional drought (D3-D4) stayed concentrated west of the Continental Divide and across the San Luis Valley, though parts of the Front Range Urban Corridor and southeast Colorado were also classified as extreme drought.
Improvement was uneven and largely tied to scattered thunderstorm activity: northeastern Colorado saw the most meaningful gains, with the state’s drought-free area roughly doubling from 3% to 6% by month’s end, while statewide extreme-or-worse drought coverage eased from about 47% to 44%. For most drought-stricken areas, the rain that fell was enough to keep conditions from worsening but not enough to produce real improvement — and southeast Colorado, western Colorado, and the San Luis Valley all saw conditions deteriorate further in spots.
A deadly month for wind, fire, and flooding
August’s extreme heat came paired with severe weather that turned fatal in two separate incidents. On Aug. 8, thunderstorm-driven winds — estimated by firefighters on scene at 85 to 100 mph, raising suspicion of a localized microburst — brought down trees and powerlines near Greeley. The downed lines ignited a grass fire that burned about 22 acres and killed a woman and a dog, while severely burning another man.
Flash flooding also continued through the month. Heavy rain and hail flooded roadways across the Denver metro on Aug. 15, disabling several vehicles and prompting driver rescues. The next day, heavy rain over the Aspen Acres burn scar near Beulah triggered debris flows that killed one man.
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