Winter Weather — West Central Plateau, New Mexico

2022-12-28 · West Central Plateau, New Mexico

Event narrative

I-40 was closed due to a crash caused by severe winter weather road conditions west of Gallup to the Arizona border.

Wider weather episode

The first in a series of forecast winter storms brought a mix of high winds, accumulating snow, and snow squalls to northern and central New Mexico. A strong section of the jetstream crossed areas along and east of the central mountain chain, starting over the Sangre de Cristo Mountains first before shifting south over the central highlands and south-central mountains. Peak wind gusts of 60 to 79 mph impacted these areas. Strong westerly winds also reached parts of the adjacent highlands and eastern plains, including Raton, Las Vegas, and Tucumcari. Winter impacts from snow focused mostly over western NM along the Continental Divide where the heaviest amounts of up to a foot were reported atop the Chuska Mountains, Jemez Mountains, and southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Snow squalls were also reported near Farmington and Santa Fe during the evening hours, producing near zero visibility and icy roads. Road closures also resulted from the snow packed and icy road conditions along I-40 from Grants to the AZ border, and along I-25 near La Bajada just south of Santa Fe near the Cochiti Pueblo.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1061901. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.