DENVER — After Thursday's devastating wildfire, snow and colder temperatures are finally here. The snow helps firefighters with any leftover smoldering and embers, but it made travel difficult as Friday afternoon turned to night.
Additionally, dangerously cold temperatures moved in overnight, dropping the mercury down into the single digits for most by New Year's morning.
Snowfall totals will range from 4 to 8 inches for most, though the foothills (including Boulder) and the Palmer Divide could end up with closer to 8 or 9 inches by the time the snow ends mid-morning on Saturday.
Here's a running blog of weather-related impacts.
8:30 a.m. Saturday
Denver experienced one of its snowiest New Year's Eves on record, with an official measurement of 4.5 inches, tying the record set back in 1886. An additional half-inch fell after midnight.
The temperature dropped to 1 degree in Denver, the coldest recorded this season and the coldest temperature since the city hit -1 degree on Feb. 16, 2021.
The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has reported multiple delays due to road and lane closures because of the weather and resulting crashes, and commercial chain laws are in effect for multiple roadways, including parts of Interstate 70 and Colorado State Highway 67.
Recently reported incidents include:
- Both northbound and southbound Colorado State Highway 139 have been closed between Four A Ridge and Sawmill Canyon roads multiple times due to vehicles becoming stalled in the snow.
- Intermittent traffic holds on northbound Colorado State Highway 145 for snow removal.
The latest updates on road conditions can be found on CDOT's website and Twitter account.
10:40 p.m. Friday
The heaviest snow is moving out of the Denver area, but we're still tracking light snow overnight. Somewhere between 4 to 6 inches of snow has fallen in the metro.
Bitterly cold temperatures will also be in place on Saturday. Nobody - absolutely nobody - should be in a home without heat tonight. It's going to be dangerously cold as overnight lows drop into the single digits with possibly a few sub-zero readings by early Saturday morning.
5:15 p.m.
A narrow band of very heavy snow is lashing the north side of the Denver area. This is making travel all kinds of difficult out there.
Avoid travel if possible. It's the perfect New Year's Eve to curl up on the couch and 9NEWS and chill.
4:00 p.m.
Roads are getting slick and dangerous in northern Colorado. Slowdowns and accidents are being reported in the Fort Collins area, and things are getting worse around Denver as well.
3:20 p.m.
A band of heavier snow is moving through Arvada, Wheat Ridge and the western half of the Denver metro area.
We're starting to see more reports of accidents on the roads, including a lane closure on I-70 eastbound near I-25.
Bridges and overpasses will freeze over first.
3:00 p.m.
Snow is falling across most of the Denver area. It's lightly accumulating on grassy surfaces in and around Denver.
Up by Fort Collins, about an inch of snow has already fallen, along with some of the higher foothills to the west and north of Denver.
For most of the area, the snow will start to stick on roads after dark (5-6 p.m.).
1:00 p.m.
A few flakes are moving their way into the Palmer Divide and the south side of the metro area.
Again, it likely won't accumulate for most until 4 or 5 p.m.
11:45 a.m.
There's a narrow band of moderate-to-heavy snow moving through parts of the northern metro area, leading to minor accumulations.
Remember: Bridges and overpasses freeze over first. While it's too warm for snow to accumulate on most road surfaces, bridges and overpasses could be slick. Take extra care on those.
The main round of snow moves into most of the metro area later this afternoon.
11:30 a.m.
An earlier accident on C-470 westbound at mile marker 5.5 (Lakewood) has been cleared.
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