(SOUTHERN COLORADO) — Snow develops quickly west of the Continental Divide on Tuesday evening, Feb. 21, and becomes heavy by midnight, Wednesday, Feb. 22.
A Blizzard Warning goes up for the Wolf Creek Pass and upper Rio Grande valley at 5 p.m. Tuesday evening. Travel isn’t recommended.
For the rest of the mountains east of the divide, snow will spread east into early Wednesday.
Over the plains, an arctic cold front will move south late Tuesday evening over northeast Colorado and into Southern Colorado to Highway 50 by Wednesday morning. While there could be some snow late in Colorado Springs, it is more likely over the Palmer Divide up to Denver.
Wednesday morning’s commute will be impacted and low temperatures overnight on Tuesday will occur as the sun is coming up for areas behind the front.
The heaviest snowfall amounts will occur in the mountains along with very strong winds, so travel west may become extremely difficult, if not impossible through Wednesday.
The Blizzard Warning for the San Juans continues into Thursday morning, Feb. 23 as well as Winter Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories for much of the high country.
Wednesday’s Advisories:
With the front moving through in the early morning, temps over the eastern plains will stay cold and hold steady or even drop through the day.
The wind could end up between 20 and 30 mph at times as the main upper-level storm approaches from the west. This will keep wind chill readings in the single digits and teens throughout the day.
Wind gusts southwest of Pueblo over the higher terrain on Wednesday will be between 50 and 80 mph up above the arctic air.
The wind will also impact the Raton Mesa out to Springfield and the San Luis Valley. Any snow in these areas will result in low visibility and difficult travel.
Some of the mountains and ski resorts could see quite a bit of snow, with the San Juans picking up another 1-2 feet on the high end through the day Wednesday. But amounts across the Front Range and plains look lighter.
We expect some light snow in the Pikes Peak Region through the morning with some more intense bands or bursts moving across this area.
As for the higher terrain south of Pueblo and the southern I-25 corridor during the late morning and afternoon, a few inches are possible for Pueblo if a burst or two hits us with much of the same across Teller County and northern El Paso County.
This could change, so stay tuned for later updates on snowfall amounts.
Snow and wind start to taper down early Thursday morning. Cold air sinks in with 30s and 40s across the region, before warmth returns by the end of the week.
By next weekend, temperatures will soar back into 50s to 60s under a drying trend.
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