Colorado’s first snowstorm of the season may not go down in the record books, but it still managed to blow past average monthly snow totals for the Front Range and Eastern Plains and provide much-needed moisture for the region.
The storm’s long duration was a buffer against some of the worst impacts on metro Denver, said David Barjenbruch, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Boulder office.
Denver International Airport and the southeast metro, including Highlands Ranch and parts of Aurora, saw around 20 inches of snow over 96 hours, almost tripling the November average of 7.3 inches. It was Denver’s 11th-largest snowstorm on record, Barjenbruch said.
Communities farther north saw less snow that melted quickly, further diminishing the impact, Barjenbruch said. Boulder recorded 10 to 12 inches of snow throughout the storm, while Longmont logged 3 to 6 inches.
“We got off relatively lucky. We had some impacts but it was spread out over a long time and the melting on the road helped,” he said. “That was not the case on the plains, where we had interstates closed down for several days in a row.”
The Eastern Plains saw the largest snow totals during the storm and skated within a few inches of previous records set in 1946 during another early November snowstorm.
Elbert, Lincoln and southern Washington counties measured between 30 to 42 inches of snow, averaging 3 feet overall, Barjenbruch said. Those communities usually see less snow than Denver, with a Genoa weather station averaging 4.1 inches for the month, making this “quite a rare” event.
Related Articles
Colorado snowstorm cut power to more than 52,000 homes, thousands without power Sunday morning
More than 500 flights delayed and canceled at DIA as winter weather tapers off
Colorado road conditions: Denver area reopens, while plains highways remain closed
Colorado weather: Waning winter storm leaves more than 3 feet of snow as rescue ops continue
Colorado snow totals for Nov. 9, 2024
“This storm was definitely butting up against some of those impressive totals,” he said. “This is one that will be remembered for a while.”
The storm also put a dent in a drought that was ramping up in the region, with 3 feet of heavy, wet snow melting into about 3 inches of liquid water, Barjenbruch said.
It’s not clear whether this storm foreshadows a snowy winter, but there’s already a chance of another snowstorm developing next week.
“Our long-term forecast would suggest we’re at or slightly below normals with regards to precipitation, but it only takes one big storm,” he said.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.