A cold front moving through the central part of the state on Wednesday is bringing snow to Cortez and Durango but little accumulation is expected at lower elevations. But U.S. Highway 160 closed briefly Wednesday afternoon because of multiple crashes.
U.S. 160 closed in both directions twice Wednesday after separate accidents on Mancos Hill, said Lisa Schwantes, spokesperson for the Colorado Department of Transportation.
At 1:30 p.m. a crash involving two commercial vehicles closed the highway until 2:40 p.m. Then at 3:40 p.m. another vehicle crash in the same area caused the highway to be closed between mile marker 61 and mile marker 65 from 3:40 p.m. to 4 p.m., when one lane was opened allowing alternating traffic. Both lanes were reopened at 4:24 p.m.
Snowy conditions caused slick roads across Southwest Colorado, and there were at least two crashes in Montezuma County during the storm, according to police reports. A two-car crash in blizzard conditions caused one vehicle to travel off U.S. 160 south of Cortez and roll onto its top.
Later tonight wind is expected to cause problems
“The real story will be later this evening when strong winds out of the north-northwest should begin blowing,” said Meteorologist Michael Charnick.
Winds from 20 to 30 mph with gusts as high as 50 mph could begin around sunset Wednesday in Cortez with strong gusts continuing through the night, he said.
A wind advisory is in effect from noon through 10 p.m. today for the Four Corners, the Dolores and Animas river basins and southeast Utah.
A wind advisory means strong winds can make driving difficult and travelers should use extra caution.
In the central and northern parts of the state, the Colorado Department of Transportation is advising people to avoid driving along the Interstate 25, I-70 and I-76 corridors.
While only small and rapidly melting accumulations are likely at lower elevations, Charnick said Telluride could receive as much as 8 inches and Silverton could receive up to 6 inches.
The system is expected to move out of the area early Thursday with lingering snow possible in higher elevations, Charnick said.
Another small system is expected to move through Southwest Colorado on Friday bringing a chance of scattered thunderstorms to Cortez and a chance of a rain-snow mix to Durango, he said.
The weekend should be clear in Southwest Colorado except for the possibility of lingering early-morning snow on Saturday in the high country.
parmijo@the-journal.com