A winter storm warning is in effect from 6 p.m. Sunday to 9 a.m. Tuesday, the National Weather Service announced.
Locations include Durango, Bayfield, Ignacio and Pagosa Springs. There, snow accumulations are expected to total between 4 to 8 inches.
Mike Charmick, a meteorologist with weather service in Grand Junction, said the snow will start Sunday night into Monday morning. On Monday, temperatures will get above freezing during the day, around the mid-30s, which will turn the precipitation to a rain-snow mix. As temperatures fall Monday night, snow will again accumulate into Tuesday morning.
The weather service warns that mountain roads could become snow-packed during this time, and winter driving conditions will last through the week.
A winter storm warning means significant amounts of snow are expected or are occurring.
Strong winds and blowing snow are also possible, and this may make travel hazardous or impossible.
This is expected to be the last of three predicted winter storms since Friday night to hit Southwest Colorado.
As of Sunday morning, Durango had 11 inches of snow and areas above 10,000 feet in elevation had up to 20 inches.
In the last 72 hours, Purgatory Resort reported 19 inches of new snow, and Wolf Creek Ski Area reported 29 inches of new snow.
All mountain passes around Southwest Colorado remained opened as of Sunday afternoon, though U.S. Highway 550 between Durango and Ouray experienced intermittent delays caused by avalanche work.
Storms are expected to clear Southwest Colorado on Tuesday night, and Charmick said latest models show the weather around Durango will remain dry through Saturday. In the high country, a small storm might result in a couple inches on Thursday, but otherwise weather patterns remain calm for the rest of the week.
“This is your one big storm for the week down there,” he said.
jromeo@durangoherald.com
