Heavy Snow, Grand and Battlement Mesas
- When
- February 20, 11:00 AM MST to February 21, 6:00 AM MST
- Where
- Grand and Battlement Mesas forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.159, -108.078 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Colorado, February 20 to 21, 1997
A moist northerly flow aloft brought 4 to 8 inches of new snow mainly to the central mountains and northwest San Juan Mountains of western Colorado. The heaviest amount was 11 inches in the mountains around Aspen.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 4
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS GJT wrote it up.
A moist northerly flow aloft brought 4 to 8 inches of new snow mainly to the central mountains and northwest San Juan Mountains of western Colorado. The heaviest amount was 11 inches in the mountains around Aspen.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
4 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Gore and Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys
- When
- February 20, 11:00 AM MST to February 21, 6:00 AM MST
- Where
- Gore and Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.481, -107.172 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Central Gunnison and Uncompahgre River Basin
- When
- February 20, 11:00 AM MST to February 21, 6:00 AM MST
- Where
- Central Gunnison and Uncompahgre River Basin forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.737, -107.907 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Northwestern San Juan Mountains
- When
- February 20, 11:00 AM MST to February 21, 6:00 AM MST
- Where
- Northwestern San Juan Mountains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.210, -107.755 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Heavy Snow
- Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flood in Texas, February 20 to 21, 1997
- Tornado in Arkansas, February 20, 1997
- Flooding in Illinois, February 20 to 22, 1997
- Tornado in Texas, February 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Oklahoma, February 20, 1997
- Flash Flood in Texas, February 20, 1997
- Flash Flooding in Illinois, February 20 to 24, 1997
- Flash Flood in Texas, February 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Arkansas, February 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Arkansas, February 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Arkansas, February 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Texas, February 20, 1997
More
Every storm in Colorado in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, February 1997
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5590206, 5590207, 5590208, 5590209.