While Durangoans woke up to a postcard Christmas, snowplow crews for the city of Durango, La Plata County and the Colorado Department of Transportation were on the job starting in the early morning hours.
4:15 p.m.
CDOT has closed U.S. Highway 285 from Fairplay to Grant, a stretch of about 20 miles, because of adverse weather conditions. There is no estimated time of reopening.
High wind advisories are in effect on I-25 in Pueblo and Huerfano counties as well as along the I-70 corridor from Copper Mountain to Denver.
2:15 p.m.
The National Weather Service has lifted the winter weather advisory for Durango. The advisory was originally scheduled to last through midnight.
“You may see some scattered showers through the day, but we’re not expecting much more accumulation,” said John Kyle, data acquisition program manager for the Grand Junction office of the weather service. “The mountains are still under a winter weather warning, and they could pick up a few more inches.”
The weather service has collected snowfall reports from around the area, including 8 inches at Red Mountain, Coal Bank and Molas passes, near Vallecito and north of Rockwood. Some areas received upwards of 16 inches, Kyle said.
Purgatory Resort, which received 10 inches overnight, received another 3 inches Christmas morning. The resort may see a few more inches before the storm moves through. The mountains are still under a winter weather warning until midnight.
The Colorado Avalanche Information Center has classified the Southern San Juan Mountains at a considerable avalanche risk – its second highest rating – for Christmas Day, continuing into Monday.
“Dangerous avalanche conditions exist,” the center said. “New snow and strong winds continue to test our snowpack. Winds can load a slope 3-5 times faster than when snow is just falling from the sky.”
Temperatures are expected to drop behind this storm, Kyle said. Highs are not expected to get above freezing until Tuesday, with a low of 6 degrees Sunday night and 12 degrees Monday night.
“It will gradually warm up as the week goes on,” Kyle said.
1:30 p.m.
The Colorado Department of Transportation closed Cumbres and La Manga passes on Colorado Highway 17 because of a crash and adverse weather conditions.
The department has posted alerts for highways across the state, including chain laws on sections of I-70 in the mountains, Lizard Head Pass on Colorado Highway 145 near Telluride and several other passes across the state.
According to the scanner, blowing snow is creating limited visibility in several areas.
11:40 a.m.
The Durango-La Plata County Airport reports that all American airlines flights scheduled to depart so far on Christmas Day have been canceled, including 6:20 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. flights to Dallas-Fort Worth and an 11:21 a.m. flight to Phoenix.
United Flight 4481 from Denver is in the air and scheduled to arrive at 12:25 p.m.
10:45 a.m.
Chain laws are in effect for Coal Bank, Molas and Red Mountain passes on U.S. Highway 550, requiring all passenger vehicles to have snow or mud/snow tires, use chains or other alternative traction devices or a four-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive vehicle. Wolf Creek Pass, on U.S. Highway 160, while also reporting snow, icy and snow-packed conditions, only has a commercial vehicle chain law in effect at this time.
According to the scanner, roads are slick, and several vehicles are off the road.
Purgatory Resort is reporting 10 inches of new snow overnight and 25 inches in the past four days, with excellent powder conditions. Wolf Creek Ski Area also received 10 inches, with 31 inches received in the past 72 hours. Hesperus Ski Area received 9 inches overnight and reported heavy snow falling Sunday morning.
abutler@durangoherald.com
