A slow-moving winter storm brought several inches of snow to Southwest Colorado late Tuesday and early Wednesday, closing schools across La Plata County.
Durango, Bayfield and Ignacio school districts closed all schools Wednesday as a result of hazardous road conditions caused by the heavy snowfall.
“This decision was made in collaboration with emergency management,” Durango School District 9-R said in its announcement.
The closures included all bus routes and school-related events and activities.
La Plata County government was operating on a two-hour delay Wednesday as a result of the weather conditions.
The National Weather Service said the heavy snowfall was the result of a low-pressure system creeping across the Southwest from the West Coast.
“The system dropped from California,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Tom Renwick. “It’s a closed, low system coming across the Four Corner region. It’s slow moving, which means everyone is getting plenty of snow.”
Renwick said Durango-area residents can expect another inch of snow throughout the day Wednesday and a chilly night.
“Depending on the cloud coverage, Durango could hit zero degrees,” he said.
Outside Durango, snowfall was abundant throughout Southwest Colorado. Bayfield received 12 inches of snowfall; the Cortez area received a minimum of 3 inches; Mancos received 9 inches; Hesperus reported 5 inches and the Pagosa Springs area had reports of 6 to 10 inches of snow, with 12 inches around Pagosa Lake.
One to 2 feet of snow fell in the San Juan Mountains, and Purgatory Resort reported 25 inches in less than 24 hours.
After the low-pressure system moves out, Renwick said there will be no more snowfall for the next few days.
“Next week, possibly on (Feb. 22), there might be another possible snowstorm,” he said. “Definitely in the middle of the week, though it might head north.”
Thursday’s high temperatures will be in the upper 20s once the clouds move out, and the Durango area will finally warm up on Friday.
“Thursday is going to be chilly, and so will Friday morning,” Renwick said, “but then Friday will warm into the 30s and low 40s.”
molsen@durangoherald.com
