Blizzard — Kit Carson County, Colorado

2023-12-26 · Kit Carson County, Colorado

Event narrative

Blizzard conditions were met for about 3.5 hours according to the Burlington ASOS. A peak wind gust of 52 mph was recorded at 2:45 AM. A semi jackknifed between MM 437 and 438 on I-70, causing the westbound lanes to be closed.

Key impacts: limited visibility, snow packed roads, blowing and drifting snow.

Wider weather episode

Following a less impactful snow system that occurred the weekend before the Christmas holiday, another system formed in South Central/Southwestern Nebraska. This system moved southwest into Eastern Colorado producing blizzard conditions on the 25th and early on the 26th. The Burlington ASOS recorded 3.5 consecutive hours of blizzard conditions on the morning of the 26th. There were other times that conditions briefly met blizzard status, which prolonged the impact of this system. The snow, combined with wind gusts generally ranging from 30 to 45 mph with occasional gusts around 50 mph, caused blowing snow to reduce visibilities across portions of Eastern Colorado, heavily impacting travel in the area. Up to 6 inches of snow was reported in Eastern Colorado from this system. The storm finally left the area the morning of the 28th.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1150077. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.