DENVER – A major storm dumped heavy snow in Colorado – forcing flight cancellations and shutting down a highway that connects Denver to Colorado ski resorts for much of the day, stranding some people in their cars for hours.
The storm comes as other parts of the country face severe weather. Massive chunks of hail pelted parts of Kansas and Missouri, with storms unleashing possible tornadoes in Kansas. Earlier this month, a blizzard dumped more than 10 feet (3 meters) of snow on a northern California ski resort.
The Colorado storm delivered the slushy, wet snow typical for March, one of the snowiest months in Denver, and wasn’t expected to wind down until Friday morning, AP reported.
The heaviest accumulations were expected in Colorado’s Front Range region, where the eastern plains meet the Rocky Mountains and the vast majority of the state’s population lives. Most of the snow was falling in the foothills west of Denver.
Those higher elevations had up to 3 feet (1 meter) of snow and more than another foot was forecast by Friday. Denver itself got up to about 9 inches (23 centimeters). Up to another 10 inches were expected in the Denver area.
A mountain stretch of Interstate 70, the state’s main east-west highway, closed as the storm moved in. Trucks, many without the tire chains required to travel the route, got stuck and blocked other vehicles from getting through for hours.
The big rigs were towed out by the afternoon, said Sgt. Patrick Rice of the Colorado State Patrol.
Some drivers may have been stranded until I-70 reopened, he said, but no injuries were reported.
The highway remains closed to trucks through noon Friday and could shut to passenger vehicles too as the storm picks up. Rice urged any drivers setting out to bring food and blankets in case they get trapped.
