Winter Weather — Grand Valley, Colorado

2023-12-08 · Grand Valley, Colorado

Event narrative

A snow squall moved through the area, dropping visibilities at the Grand Junction Regional Airport to half a mile or less as winds gusted above 30 mph peaking at 39 mph likely with the squall. Snowfall ranged from trace to 2 inches.

Wider weather episode

A low pressure trough with an associated cold front pushed through western Colorado and produced moderate snow across the northern and central mountains and some valleys. Additionally, gusty winds occurred with winds exceeding 50 mph in the mountains at times and in excess of 40 mph in the valleys, resulting in reduced visibilities. Instability associated with the front led to stronger snow bands along portions of west-central Colorado. As a result, a long-lived snow squall impacted the I-70 corridor from Grand Junction east towards Vail as visibilities dropped to less than one quarter mile, also resulting in a 21 car pileup between DeBeque and Parachute and a 13 mile stretch of I-70 closed for much of the afternoon into the evening on 12/8.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1149080. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.