Winter Weather — Upper Gunnison River Valley, Colorado

2024-02-27 · Upper Gunnison River Valley, Colorado

Event narrative

Generally 1 to 2 inches of snow fell across the area. Winds gusted in the 35 to 45 mph range with a peak wind gust of 46 mph at the Gunnison-Crested Butte Regional Airport. Moderate to heavy snow with visibility less than a quarter mile was observed between Montrose and Gunnison via CDOT webcams. The Gunnison-Crested Butte Regional Airport reported visibility below 1 mile and as low as quarter mile with snow and winds gusting between 40 and 50 mph during a 40 minute period on February 27 during the squall.

Wider weather episode

A strong cold front moved from northwest to southeast across all of eastern Utah and western Colorado, with significant banding and a long lived snow squall that accompanied the cold front. This resulted in strong winds with gusts 45 to 55 mph in the valleys along the boundary with gusts 60 to 80 mph in the mountains. Low visibilities and whiteout conditions also occurred at times along this frontal boundary due to falling and blowing snow. Accumulations in the lower elevations were 2 inches or less in spots due to the brief nature of the snowfall along the front as well as milder temperatures, but the impacts due to the snow squalls were felt across much of the region as temperatures plummeted behind it. The San Juan mountains received the heaviest snow with the central Colorado mountains receiving moderate snowfall accumulations.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1165850. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.