DENVER — A late-season snowstorm that slammed Colorado’s Front Range Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning brought down trees and poles and knocked out power to tens of thousands.
The rain that had fallen all day Tuesday began to turn to snow in the Denver metro area around 5 p.m., as school districts announced closures.
Accumulating several inches overnight, the wet, heavy snow typical for this time of year was too much for some trees in the Denver metro area, leading to reports of broken branches, downed trees, and widespread power outages.
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As of Wednesday morning, Xcel Energy reported at least 700 outages affecting more than 43,000 customers.
The company said crews are working through hazardous conditions to restore widespread outages and will prioritize large groups first, then move on to neighborhood-level and individual outages. Xcel said additional crews are being brought in to speed power restoration.
In Broomfield, fallen and broken tree branches across the city prompted police to warn residents to keep an eye up when walking to avoid falling branches. In Loveland, police reported that toppled trees knocked out power to several residents, urging them to stay back from active power lines.
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Estes Park saw 22 to more than 30 inches of snow, the weather service said. Resident Kathy Ross said enough snow fell in her yard to clear the head of her Boston terrier mix.
“The view of the mountains is just spectacular, as long as you like the color white,” said Ross, who spent Wednesday morning shoveling the sidewalks outside the used bookstore she manages.
Skies are expected to gradually clear Wednesday afternoon, but temperatures will drop sharply behind the storm. A freeze warning goes into effect at 8 p.m. Wednesday and lasts through 8 a.m. Thursday.
► Watch Maggie Bryan's report in the player below:
After the cold snap, temperatures rebound into the mid‑ to upper‑60s under mostly sunny skies.
The storm is welcome during a drought
April was warmer and dryer than usual, with Denver missing an inch of rain and 2.8 inches of snow last month.
For some farmers, who have felt the pressure from Colorado's ongoing drought, the snow was an opportunity.
Adam Jones of Unsung Family Farms in Longmont planted carrot seeds just days earlier to take advantage of the precipitation.
“You can’t get as even distribution with driplines or sprinklers,” he said. “There’s nothing like starting seeds with snow or water.”
Jones moved more delicate crops inside, and used a heater to keep them warm.
The unsettled weather stretched beyond the Rockies.
Severe thunderstorms, some capable of producing tornadoes, were possible across the Southeast on Wednesday, with the strongest storms expected from Arkansas through Georgia.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
