Old man winter has finally decided to show up to Southwestern Colorado, and Montezuma County residents woke Monday morning to find snow blanketing the ground, their cars, sidewalks, and rooftops.
The storm moved through Cortez, beginning at about 11:45 p.m. Sunday night, delivering around three inches of snow to the area, before letting up mid-Monday morning, according to local weatherman Jim Andrus. He described the snow as perfect for making snowballs, but easily transformed to ice under the weight of vehicles.
Visibility was limited on the slippery roads, calling for local drivers and commuters to readjust their visors from blocking the sun and instead hunch over their steering wheels with squinting eyes, keeping a safe speed as conditions became increasingly slick.
Cortez Public Works director Jack Nickerson said that the city is doing its normal snowplow duty for this kind of quick-moving snowstorm.
Its not a lot of snow, comparatively speaking, Nickerson said, so were sanding the icy spots and plowing where it needs it.
Nickerson said the city has been ready and waiting, and so far this year crews havent had much snow to deal with.
We have lots of sand and salt saved up, Nickerson said. Finally the guys get to go out and see if they can remember how to plow, he said. I think everyone is enjoying the moisture.
The city took advantage of recent mild weather to gain a head-start on spring projects, with crews keeping busy maintaining local roads and highways, instead of plowing them.
Theyve been out crack-sealing the asphalt, said Dona Thompson, a city administrative assistant. That and pothole repair. Those are normally spring projects.
In addition to roadway maintenance, crews repaired city waterlines, put up and took down holiday decorations, chipped Christmas trees for mulch and inventoried street signs, as well as other city maintenance usually implemented during the warmer spring months.
Its sure not like last year, added Nickerson. We had a ton of snow to deal with.
Keeping in accordance with the citys snow policy, snow removal operational priorities fall in order starting with heavily driven Main Street, Mildred Road and Empire Street, then on to those surrounding city schools. After clearing those areas, crews move into downtown and then onto residential neighborhoods.
With nothing but dry roads, motorists havent had time to brush up on winter driving skills, and the number of fender benders and slide-offs increased by the hour on Monday, according to Cortez Police Department Public Information Officer Angelia Young.
Despite the relatively low accumulations during the morning commute, the accident tally was growing.
There has been a high volume of accidents, Young said Monday morning. With 10 outside the city, one being near Cahone and three inside city limits.
Young also said that the Colorado State Patrol put the city of Cortez on an accident alert status. The status is put into effect when weather is so severe that law enforcement is unable to respond to every incident, and only do so when there is injury or fatality, suspicion of drugs or alcohol, inoperable vehicles, hit and run, or damage to public property or signage.
In preparation for winter conditions, the city has adopted a new alternative treatment for roadways this year. Partnering with the Colorado Department of Transportation, the city will now be using a salt-brine solution instead of magnesium chloride to de-ice driving surfaces. According to a public works office update, the new compound is a more environmentally friendly mix, as well as more cost-effective to the city budget.
Major city streets and the sand will also be pre-treated with the salt-brine mixture, in an effort to further reduce icy conditions.
Also, in 2008, a safety ordinance passed requiring business owners in the downtown business district to remove snow from storefronts no later than noon, two days following any measurable snowfall. The areas under the ordinance are Main Street from Maple east to Highway 145, North and South Broadway, and businesses on side streets from Maple to Harrison Street, between North and First Street.
While this winter has seen unseasonably warm temperatures that come with a worrisome lack of precipitation, the snow is a welcome sight for farmers in the region.
Its still way too early, said local hay farmer Brian Wilson, but at least its a better start than it was last month. Its not much, but it covered the ground and well take that.
A reminder of the diverse climate of the county, Towaoc, 12 miles south of Cortez, received no moisture at all, according to Andrus.
This snowfall brings the winter total to 9.3 inches, Andrus said.
Although it will be colder, well be back to sunshine this week, he said.
Reach Brandon Mathis at brandonm@cortezjournal.com