Colorado’s mountain communities and ski resorts have been pounded by much-needed snowfall over the last couple of weeks and Steamboat Springs is no exception.
In fact, schools in Steamboat were canceled this week for the first time in 13 years. Back in 2011, schools were closed because brutally cold temps dropped to 40 degrees below zero, but this time, the plows couldn’t keep up with all the heavy snow.
Denver7 Morning Meteorologist Lisa Hidalgo, who is up in Steamboat attending a weather forecaster convention, took a look at how the plows handle snow that is measured in feet and not inches.
“These plows are no joke,” Hidalgo said on Denver7 morning news on Friday. “We had so much in the way of snow Wednesday night. The snowfall rates coming down, the timing of it all, the plows had a hard time keeping up with it.”
Hidalgo watched plow crews take care of the city and side streets on Thursday. “It’s a well-oiled machine,” she said. “On average, these plows and maintenance crews manage around 300 inches of snow per year.”
And with the nonstop snow over the last couple of weeks, Colorado’s snowpack is pointed in the right direction.
Hidalgo said near Steamboat, snowpack is around 100 percent of normal. Statewide, the latest snowpack numbers showed 92 percent of normal which is a nice jump from the 70 percent reported nearly 2 weeks ago.
And the snow has certainly dumped in Steamboat with the gauges reporting 87.5 inches of snow just in January, said Hidalgo.
In fact, it has snowed the last 13 of the 14 days in Steamboat, which is the longest stretch since 1991.
