Cars and driving - Eastern Plains
On the plains around Wray and Yuma, summer storms are part of the calendar
Yuma County sits in tornado-and-hail country, so the National Weather Service forecast and warnings are a normal part of planning a summer day here.
Published June 10, 2026 - Last verified June 11, 2026
Out on the Eastern Plains, the big weather is not snow on a mountain pass. It is the summer thunderstorm. Yuma County sits in country that sees tornadoes and hail, and the National Weather Service keeps a long record of storms here going back decades.
Most of these storms are not disasters. But a strong cell can drop large hail, throw down hard wind, and on the worst days spin up a tornado, usually in the warm months. Driving the county’s long, open highways, you can watch a storm build for miles, and that same open ground means a warning can mean real business with little to slow it down.
The practical habit is simple. In storm season, glance at the National Weather Service forecast before a drive across the county, and take a watch or warning seriously rather than trying to outrun it. Hail can ruin a windshield or a roof in minutes; a tornado warning means get to a sturdy building, not the road. For new arrivals, learning the rhythm of these storms is part of settling in here, the way mountain folks learn the snow.
Check the current forecast and any watches or warnings with the National Weather Service before traveling in storm season.