Winter Weather — Debeque To Silt Corridor, Colorado

2023-12-07 to 2023-12-08 · Debeque To Silt Corridor, Colorado

Event narrative

Generally 2 to 4 inches of snow fell across the area. Additionally, a snow squall moved through the area on 12/8, dropping visibilities at the Rifle Garfield County Airport to a quarter of a mile as winds gusted above 30 mph at times throughout the storm. This snow squall resulted in a 21 car pileup along I-70 between DeBeque and Parachute, causing a 13 mile stretch of I-70 to be closed for much of the afternoon and evening.

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 1149081. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.