Heavy Snow — San Juan Mountains, New Mexico

2017-01-05 to 2017-01-06 · San Juan Mountains, New Mexico

Event narrative

Snowfall across the high terrain of eastern Rio Arriba County ranged from 12 to 18 inches, including 12 inches at Chama.

Wider weather episode

A major winter storm impacted nearly all of northern and central New Mexico just a few days after ringing in 2017. An extremely cold airmass shifted slowly south and west into eastern New Mexico on the 5th while a moist, slow-moving upper level wave shifted north and east from Arizona through the 6th. The combination of bitterly cold air at the surface and abundant mid and upper level moisture resulted in a major winter storm across New Mexico. Temperatures in the single digits with widespread snowfall amounts of 4 to 8 inches created severe travel conditions across the eastern plains. The Sangre de Cristo Mountains were pummeled with 1 to 2 feet of snowfall. Bitterly cold air seeped into the Rio Grande Valley from the eastern plains on the morning of the 6th while a band of snowfall pushed across the area. Temperatures in the middle teens with around one inch of snow created treacherous travel conditions across the Albuquerque metro area. Nearly 100 motor vehicle accidents shut down many roads across the city and closed schools. Shelters were opened in many areas and the New Mexico EOC was activated for several days until impacts improved. The coldest air since 2011 filtered into the state behind this storm. Wind chill values across the eastern plains fell to between 20 and 30 degrees below zero.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 665737. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.