Arctic blast leaves Colorado with subzero temps, snow. These areas were hit the hardest
While Denver was below freezing for almost 91 hours, other parts of Colorado were hit even harder.
DENVER (KDVR) — An arctic blast moved into Colorado on Friday and stayed until Tuesday morning, bringing some of the coldest temperatures of the season.
Hundreds of flights at the Denver International Airport were delayed and canceled, and there were several traffic jams and road closures during whiteout conditions. An extreme cold warning was issued for places that reached or were likely to reach minus 25 to minus 35 degrees.
While Denver was below freezing for almost 91 hours, other parts of Colorado were hit even harder.
These areas were hit the hardest during arctic blast
Most of Colorado saw the effects of the arctic blast. However, these Colorado towns experienced the more extreme effects during the cold snap.
Coldest places reached minus 30 to 40 degrees
The National Weather Service tracked low temperatures across the state from Monday night to early Tuesday morning. According to their records, Fraser Flats, just south of Tabernash, in Grand County recorded the lowest temperature at minus 44 degrees.
Other places also reached subzero temperatures. The coldest temperature recorded Saturday through Sunday was minus 34 degrees, eight miles southwest of Lake George. Meanwhile, Lake George dropped to minus 31 degrees and Cumbres Trestle and Gunnison recorded minus 28 degrees.
Some areas saw over a foot of snow
Between midnight Friday and the end of Tuesday, Boulder and Jefferson County saw the most snow. According to Iowa State University snow reports, Sunshine and Ward saw the most snow with over 14 inches. Meanwhile, Golden saw 13.5 inches.
In comparison, Denver recorded 5.1 inches of snow during the cold snap.
Highest wind gusts reached over 80 mph
Iowa State University also recorded wind gusts. According to its records, Rocky Flats saw the highest wind gusts between 71 to 81 mph from Friday and Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Tolland, Crisman, Boulder and Marshall all recorded wind gusts at 70 mph or higher.
The extreme winter weather is over, at least for now. Skies will slowly clear through the end of the workweek, leaving Denver with highs in the 30s and 40s. Temperatures will top out on Friday with seasonal highs reaching the middle 40s, but a change is coming.
Snow and cold temperatures are back in the forecast by the weekend, but the weather across Colorado won't be nearly as severe as the mid-January arctic blast.
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