DENVER – In November, one of the worst snowstorms ever to hit the southern Rockies dumped feet of snow on the I-25 highway in New Mexico and Colorado, making it hard for people to get around.
The slow-moving storm system started to bring snow on Election Day. Over the next four days, it snowed almost a foot in the Denver metro area and almost three feet in the southeast of the state.
More than 5 million people in six states were sent winter weather alerts because the amount of snowfall broke records set in November in the 2000s.
Governor Jared Polis of Colorado called for a disaster emergency and sent the National Guard to help the areas that were hit the hardest.
The state’s transportation department said travel would be hard and that some roads might not be able to be used over the Veterans Day weekend.
Since it snowed recently, many ski resorts were planning to open, which would make traffic even more difficult along the Interstate 70 corridor.
“I-70 west of Denver to Idaho Springs will likely have bad driving conditions Saturday morning.” Drivers should allow more time for their trips. To help cut down on the number of cars on the road, skiers and riders are invited to carpool whenever they can. “On December 14, 2024, CDOT will begin running Snowstang, a seasonal shuttle service from the Denver Metro area to ski resorts in Summit County,” the agency said in a statement.
Even though the runways at Denver International Airport stayed open, hundreds of flights into and out of the United Airlines hub were canceled.
According to FlightAware, more than 480 flights were canceled and almost 800 were delayed on Friday because snow and ice made it hard to see.
Further south, in northeastern New Mexico, close to 100 cars got stuck in a blizzard-like storm near the small town of Des Moines.
Large drifts of snow and strong winds made it harder to save people in the rural parts of the state on Thursday.
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham declared regional emergencies, which let $1.5 million in funds for responding to the winter storm come in.
“This declaration gives the state more resources to continue supporting local responders as this major snowstorm persists,” Grisham said in a tweet. “I thank every single responder who has been out in the cold since Wednesday clearing roads, escorting people to safety, and doing what needs to be done to support New Mexicans challenged by this storm.”
Many people were surprised by the winter-like storm because October in the area was one of the driest and hottest in recent memory.
The average temperature in Denver, Colorado, was eight degrees above normal. In Albuquerque, New Mexico, the average temperature was more than seven degrees above normal.
The Southwest and southern Rockies tend to have fewer storms and less snowfall during La Niña events. During neutral and positive phases of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, there is more wetness around.
Source: Massive November Snowstorm Blankets Rockies, Disrupts Travel with Feet of Snowfall
