COLORADO SPRINGS — All signs are pointing to snow on Thursday with some (prepares his Boston accent) wicked cold air by Friday morning! Here's our current thinking of when the snow will arrive and how much you'll see.
Here's the basics of this particular system. This is a north wind driven snow event, meaning that the Pikes Peak Region, specifically the northern side of the Monument Hill and Teller County, will probably see the heaviest snow.
Snow will likely start falling mid morning in northern El Paso and Teller Counties, spreading south through the rest of the day.. Most accumulation will collect around and after lunch-time on the grass, and probably even the pavement with temperatures looking to stay below freezing.
It's likely the morning commute will be unaffected here in southern Colorado, but snow will begin falling in Denver sometime around or after 6 am. The roads up north will probably not start getting slick until sometime closer to 7 am, so arriving to work early would be a good idea at this point.
As mentioned before, there will be a strong northerly winds pushing snow primarily to the north side of Monument Hill and Teller County. We should be able to get AT LEAST a dusting through most of the Pikes Peak Region... but the better guidance points to an inch or two across most of Colorado Springs.
The Monument Hill area, Woodland Park, and mountains west of Colorado Springs will likely see the highest accumulation on Thursday. Blowing snow could reduce visibility and make lunch-time and evening commutes slow and slick through the city.
Snow will move into Pueblo, the Arkansas River Valley and Wet mountains around and after lunch time Thursday. Northerly winds from El Paso and Teller County will mean not much moisture will be able to make it south, and lower snowfall totals are expected in this region.
The Wet Mountains will probably see the highest totals through Thursday evening. Blowing snow could still lead to low visibility Thursday afternoon, although temperatures at or above freezing on highway 50 from Pueblo to Canon City will likely keep the road mostly wet or slushy until the evening.
Across the region, very little snow is expected to fall east of Pueblo, or south of the Wet mountains. Once the snow stops falling Thursday night, the big story becomes how cold our temperatures will drop into Friday morning.
Record setting temperatures are expected by Friday morning in both Colorado Springs and Pueblo. Wind chills will likely be in the single digits and below through at least mid morning Friday in Teller County and parts of El Paso County. You'll need to dig out heavy coats, hats, and gloves for the kiddos heading to school Friday morning!
We'll keep an eye on new model data and publish forecast updates through Thursday to keep you ahead of the storm!
