Heavy Snow — Chuska Mountains, New Mexico

2021-02-16 to 2021-02-17 · Chuska Mountains, New Mexico

Event narrative

Heavy snow fell in the Chuska Mountains over the three day event with the heaviest snow in the area observed on February 16th and 17th. A SNOTEL near Toadlena received an estimated 11 inches of snow.

Wider weather episode

With a very cold air mass still in place across New Mexico, another Pacific storm system brought snow to western and northern portions of the state. Snow began late on February 15, 2021 across western and central New Mexico. A brief break in the activity was observed overnight on February 16th, but snow coverage increased again by February 17th over northeastern New Mexico before finally tapering off on the 18th. Storm total snow amounts of 12 to 16 inches fell in the northern mountains, but snow totals in Santa Fe rivaled those with several observers in the metro area measuring snow amounts near a foot. This system brought another round of hazardous travel conditions to the area which had not fully recovered from the impacts from the previous winter storm system.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 933682. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.