Mountain passes were closed and Durango School District 9-R canceled classes Monday as a result of poor road conditions.
The winter storm Sunday delivered about 4.7 inches of wet snow to the city of Durango, bringing the total snowfall up to 13½ inches since Thursday.
Coal Bank, Molas and Red Mountain passes north of Durango were closed for safety reasons in both directions for most of the day. Red Mountain Pass remained closed Monday night between Silverton and Ouray.
Since Thursday, Red Mountain Pass has received about 29 inches of snow, while Silverton received 21 inches. Purgatory Resort has received 33 inches in the last four days, according the National Weather Service.
Avalanche mitigation and winter maintenance operations were expected to occur Monday morning.
Durango School District announced about 6:30 a.m. that schools would be closed Monday as a result of poor road conditions and power outages in the area. The school district had not yet determined whether classes would be canceled Tuesday. Those decisions tend to be made in the early morning hours before the start of the school day.
“Weather patterns are highly unpredictable in our region and they affect multiple microclimates and roads across La Plata County,” said 9-R spokeswoman Karla Sluis. “Our goal is to keep everyone safe.”
Bayfield School District held classes Monday, and Ignacio School District was still on winter break. Mancos received about 5 inches Sunday, and Bayfield collected close to 3½ inches.
The winter storm also led to power outages for about 2,500 La Plata Electric Association customers Sunday night because of snow falling on power lines.
About 1,500 members in the Purgatory Resort and Cascade Village area lost power from about 5 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. A little over 1,000 members lost power in the Pine Valley area near Vallecito Lake for almost 40 minutes.
“Snow will accumulate and accumulate and accumulate; eventually, it'll get too heavy ... or it will melt and it falls off. When large chunks of snow fall off the lines, they start to jiggle,” said LPEA spokeswoman Hillary Knox. “That causes our circuits to trip and causes an outage.”
As of 11:30 a.m. Monday, the largest active power outage was in Archuleta County near McCabe Creek northwest of Pagosa Springs, where 48 units were without power.
Three United Airlines flights from Denver have also been canceled as a result of weather. However, the cancellations are a result of poor weather conditions at the Denver International Airport.
Durango-La Plata County Airport Director of Aviation Tony Vicari said temperatures at the airport have been at or above freezing temperatures.
National Weather Service meteorologist Mark Miller said the storm will most likely clear up by Wednesday afternoon, but he predicted inconsistent snowfall throughout Tuesday.
“It's been a good storm cycle these last few days. It just never ends,” Miller said. “That's typically what happens with these long-duration atmospheric type river events. ... Moisture just keeps coming and it just keeps running into those mountains.”
The NWS seven-day forecast shows a slight chance of snow beginning again about midnight Thursday.
tbrown@durangoherald.com
