Dear God:Today, I am thankful for shelter from the storm.Brrrr. The calendar says otherwise, but winter is definitely here.
Tonight and tomorrow will be the coldest we've endured in Colorado since moving here in 1987. A massive arctic storm system has settled in and refuses to budge an inch.
The weather service predicts Wednesday's high to be in single digits (barely) and low to be well below zero. I'm sure we'll leave the house only to retrieve the newspapers and mail.
Thank goodness we both work from home and have a well-stocked freezer and pantry. Our new furnace is getting quite a work out. I wouldn't be surprised if schools and businesses close tomorrow.
This morning, T and I walked in the park. Conditions weren't too bad - yet. However, the temperature has been dropping steadily. Right now, with wind chill, it's double digits below zero.
The time - 4 PM. The storm's momenturm is building. Flying snow. The dreaded North Wind. Bitter cold temperatures. Brooding clouds. I'm happy to be indoors.For this blessing, I am grateful.Amen.
Headlines
December 06, 2005: IT WILL GET WORSE -
Meteorologist says cold, snow will hit area just in time for rush hour
By DEEDEE CORRELL THE GAZETTE
The Polar Express is chugging into town. A powerful storm is expected to arrive this afternoon, delivering at least half a foot of snow and frigid temperatures.
“The west side (of Colorado Springs) will get hit the hardest. Up to 8 inches won’t be out of the question,” said Kathy Torgerson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pueblo.
The storm is expected around rush hour, Torgerson said.
A minimum of 6 inches of snow is expected in El Paso County, and several inches more in Teller.
Conditions will deteriorate as the night wears on, and tonight’s low temperature is expected to be 3 below zero.
Wednesday won’t warm up much; a high temperature of 6 is expected, with a low of 10 below zero. Thursday will be drier and slightly warmer in Colorado Springs, with temperatures in the upper 20s and lower 30s, and Friday should be warmer still, with highs around 45, according to the weather service.
If today is supposed to deliver the wallop, Monday provided a taste of what was to come. In Colorado Springs, winds held steady at 24 mph, gusting up to 33 mph — mild compared with the hurricane-force winds that lashed other Front Range cities.
A wind gust in Golden reached 98 mph, a speed found in Category 2 hurricanes. An 88-mph gust was reported outside Boulder.
The Pikes Peak Cog Railway shortened its runs Monday after wind gusts reached an estimated 60 mph to 70 mph along the track that climbs to the 14,110-foot summit of Pikes Peak.
“The snow was swirling all over the place,” said Penelope Walker, an assistant manager. “It can make it dangerous to take the train.”
At least 10 tractor-trailers were blown over between Fort Collins and Cheyenne, Wyo., according to the Colorado Department of Transportation. One rig was knocked over on Interstate 25 in Pueblo and one at a busy highway interchange in suburban Denver. No injuries were immediately reported.
Several vehicles, including a semitrailer, crashed on I-25 near the Briargate Parkway exit around 1 p.m. No one was seriously injured, but traffic slowed through the area for several hours.
Many commuters found Colorado Springs streets icepacked, and city officials said crews worked feverishly to clear streets in the north half of the city where conditions were the worst.
“Right now, the northwest and northeast are our two main areas of concern,” said Peg Richardson of the city’s streets division.
The city had 53 workers driving dump trucks and responding to residents’ calls, including employees who ordinarily cover the south half of the city. They focused on clearing main arterial and collector streets, especially those on school routes.
Resident Angela Stellabotte wasn’t happy with the city service.
“I think they forgot about Springs Ranch Elementary School,” said Stellabotte, whose car slid down the hill into an intersection as she tried to take her daughter to school.
“It was horrible. How I didn’t get hit, I have no idea,” she said.
Richardson said crews spent the day concentrating on school routes, but didn’t reach that area until about 5 p.m. She said they intended to return to the school later Monday evening. In addition, she said, crews would start at 3 a.m. today on clearing all the school routes again.
The city only clears residential streets by request. Anyone who wishes to place a service request should call 385-5934. One question is whether their efforts will make much of a difference before today’s storm, which will dump snow on top of hardened ice.
Many prepared for the weather. The Air Force Academy on Monday canceled its annual Pearl Harbor Survivors Ceremony, scheduled for Wednesday morning.
The Salvation Army’s New Hope Center has opened to take in anyone who needs refuge, as it does whenever temperatures drop to freezing, director Gene Morris said.
Pet owners are advised to bring their dogs and cats inside unless they have an insulated, fully enclosed shelter, said Ann Hagerty of the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region. Unless a dog is of a breed meant to be in an arctic climate, it should be inside, she said.
Reporter Brian Newsome and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
