The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued weather alerts in six states as a winter storm continued to rage out west Friday morning.
The storm brought heavy snow and dangerous travel conditions across Colorado on Wednesday. More than 3 feet of snow had fallen in some parts of Colorado by Thursday afternoon, and the storm temporarily closed Interstate 70. Videos and photos of the fallout abounded on social media. Snow is expected to continue to fall in light amounts on Friday morning, and meteorologists are warning of impacts from the long-duration storm.
Weather alerts associated with the storm—including a winter storm warning—have been issued in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, California, New Mexico and Arizona. High wind warnings have been issued in Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California.
The storm was tapering off in some parts of the region, including in Wyoming and central Colorado, on Friday morning.
"Light snow will continue to decrease along the Front Range this morning, therefore the Winter Storm Warning will be allowed to expire," the NWS office in Denver said in the warning.
However, in other areas, the storm raged on, and meteorologists don't expect it to let up until this evening.
"Plan on slippery road conditions. Areas of blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility. The hazardous conditions could impact the evening commute," the NWS office in Pueblo, Colorado, warned.
Heavy snow was expected in California, New Mexico and Utah, while high winds also persisted in those areas.
"The combination of strong winds and falling snow may bring white out conditions near and through Tijeras Pass, creating dangerous driving conditions through the Friday morning commute," the NWS office in Salt Lake City warned.
The winds were expected to produce widespread power outages in Sacramento, California, with gusts of up to 75 miles per hour.
"Damaging winds may blow down trees and power lines. Widespread power outages are possible. Travel will be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles," the NWS office in Sacramento said.
The storm quickly became Denver's biggest of the season. Prior to the heavy fall this week, Denver's strongest snow-related storm produced 5.5 inches of snow in early February.
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NWS meteorologist Bruno Rodriguez told Newsweek that amounts varied across the city. Denver International Airport received around 5.7 inches of snow, but those totals went up to 2 feet in the western suburbs of Golden, Littleton and Lakewood.
The storm system that caused the heavy snow also produced severe thunderstorms that rolled through the Midwest on Thursday night, impacting Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. A suspected tornado hit a trailer park in Logan County, Ohio, near Indian Lake, around 70 miles northwest of Columbus, and numerous injuries and damage were reported throughout the region.
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