Cold/Wind Chill — Ne Weld County, Colorado

2022-12-21 to 2022-12-23 · Ne Weld County, Colorado

Event narrative

Wind chill temperatures ranged from -25F to -45F.

Wider weather episode

A powerful arctic outbreak brought some of the coldest temperatures to northeast Colorado in nearly 30 years. The arctic outbreak impacted the Rockies, the Midwest, Northeast, and Southern United States. Denver dropped to -24F, one-degree shy of the all-time December record of -25F set back in 1990. There was also a 75-degree drop, one-degree shy of the all-time 2-day record temperature differential. Across north-central and northeast Colorado, wind chill temperatures ranged from -25F to -54F. In the city of Denver, there was one confirmed fatality.

Denver opened up several more warming shelters. Power outages impacted up to 6400 customers in the I-25 Corridor. Numerous school districts and county government buildings were closed on the 22nd. At Denver International Airport, 645 flights were canceled and another 922 were delayed on the 22nd. The following day, 264 flights were canceled and 253 flights were delayed. Denver firefighters responded to hundreds of calls related to burst pipes in buildings and homes following the arctic freeze. Ten buildings on the University of Colorado Boulder campus were impacted by a power interruption, which resulted in widespread damage that included flooding from burst pipes. At the Dave Skaggs Research Center, extensive water damage occurred from burst pipes.

Portions of I-25, CO 14, US 287, and US 85 were closed due to squalls and blowing snow near the Wyoming border. Other closures included: CO 14 from Highway 85 to Sterling, US 6 Sterling to Nebraska state line, CO 113 Highway 138 to Nebraska state line, CO 59 I-76 to Yuma, CO 61 I-76 to Otis, CO 385 Julesburg to Holyoke. Storm totals in the mountains and foothills ranged from 4 to 13 inches, highest at Eldora Ski Area. Across the urban corridor and northeast plains, storm totals ranged from 3 to 9 inches. At Denver International Airport, 3.9 inches of snowfall was observed, with 6.0 inches at the National Weather Service Office in Boulder.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1069963. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.