UPDATED 9:35 a.m. Wednesday
Another winter storm system, this one carrying the potential for 3-5 inches of snow in Durango, led to poor visibility and delays during the morning commute Wednesday.
Durango School District 9-R buses were delayed, and Main Avenue trollies were operating on a 30-minute schedule rather than a 20-minute schedule.
Several vehicles slid off the road Wednesday morning throughout La Plata County, and at least one vehicle rolled over on a county road, according to scanner traffic.
At least one United Airlines flight from Durango to Denver was cancelled, and another en route from Denver to Durango was diverted as airport crews worked to clear the runway.
Snowfall is expected on and off today before breaking up this evening. Another storm is expected to arrive Thursday, bringing another 3-5 inches through Friday, said Ellen Heffernan, forecaster with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction.
A third storm arrives Sunday, but it is expected to track further to the south.
“This next one coming in for Friday, it looks like it might be a little colder,” Heffernan said. “The heaviest stuff goes to the south. But I think it looks pretty good, too. They’ll probably be pretty similar, but the one on Sunday looks weaker.”
Wintry weather is likely in Southwest Colorado for the rest of the week – with the heaviest snow possible on Thursday night and Friday, according to the National Weather Service.
A winter storm watch issued Tuesday afternoon for Durango and the surrounding area was upgraded in the evening to a winter weather advisory, meaning the snow storm was imminent. The advisory, which may be upgraded to a winter storm warning by morning, is in effect until midnight Wednesday, said Jim Pringle, a meteorologist at the weather service office in Grand Junction.
As the advisory was issued, the Colorado Department of Transportation put into effect the chain law on Molas Pass on U.S. Highway 550 north of Durango. The law requires commercial vehicles and large passenger vans to use chains, and passenger cars to have snow tires or chains.
The storm could bring 6 to 12 inches of snow at higher elevations and 4 to 8 inches elsewhere, Pringle said. Elevations closer to 5,000 feet – near the New Mexico border – could see rain instead of snow. Farmington is not in the advisory area, he said.
Pringle said the heaviest snow is expected from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, give or take an hour or two. The advisory area includes Durango, Bayfield, Ignacio and Pagosa Springs.
The storm is likely to leave roads with snowpack or heavy slush, the weather service said.
That will be round two for Southwest Colorado this week, with round three likely arriving Thursday night.
“The next system will be swinging through Thursday night and Friday, and it will be stronger than this one,” Pringle said. “Right now, all indications are it should result in greater snowfall accumulation.”
Those two systems are expected after an overnight snowfall that began about 6:30 p.m. Monday in Durango dumped 3 to 6 inches of snow.
The snow tapered off by mid-morning Tuesday and the sun appeared. Roads were snow-covered and slick in spots early in the day, but area passes remained open.
East Eighth Avenue, the front hill leading to Fort Lewis College, closed as of 5:15 a.m. Tuesday because of poor road conditions.
Some flights were delayed at the Durango-La Plata County Airport on Tuesday morning, but Durango School District 9-R reported no problems with buses, and schools were on schedule.
“There’s quite a bit of snow out there, but people are making it, no problem,” said district spokeswoman Julie Popp.
Snowplow drivers with the Colorado Department of Transportation said it was a warmer snow, making it easier to push around and scratch pavement. But that also increases the chances for black ice when the temperatures drop, said Nancy Shanks, spokesman with CDOT.
“We’re kind of in an unsettled pattern with a few systems moving through,” Aldis Strautins, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction, said Tuesday morning.
“The San Juan Mountains, Southwest Colorado and southeast Utah were the big beneficiaries of this little system,” he said. “Congratulations, if you like snow.”
shane@durangoherald.com
Weather and travel information
The Colorado Department of Transportation reminds motorists to check for updated weather information:
Visit www.cotrip.org for real-time road conditions, highway closures, average speeds, photos, live cameras streaming traffic, trucking information and more.
Call 511 to listen to recorded information about road conditions, projected trip travel times and trucker information.
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Visit www.codot.gov/travel/winter-driving to get information about road conditions, what to keep in a vehicle during the winter, how to safely pass a snowplow, commercial-vehicle requirements, seasonal closures, snow removal and avalanche control.
Herald Staff
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