Heavy Snow, Eastern San Juan Mountains
- When
- April 2, 12:00 AM MST to 5:50 AM MST
- Where
- Eastern San Juan Mountains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.747, -106.194 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Colorado, April 2, 1998
A strong upper level system brought a quick blast of snow to south central and southeast Colorado. Snow totals ranged from 4 to 8 inches across the affected area, with a high of 18 inches at the Valley View Hot Springs in the Northern San Luis Valley, and 15 inches at the Wolf Creek Ski Area in the Eastern San Juan mountains.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 10 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
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 10
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 PUB wrote it up.
A strong upper level system brought a quick blast of snow to south central and southeast Colorado. Snow totals ranged from 4 to 8 inches across the affected area, with a high of 18 inches at the Valley View Hot Springs in the Northern San Luis Valley, and 15 inches at the Wolf Creek Ski Area in the Eastern San Juan mountains. The snowfall brought traffic in many sections of southeast Colorado to a crawl, and was responsible for one traffic-related death in Woodland Park in Teller county.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
10 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 3:40 PM MST
- Where
- Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.832, -106.332 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Northern El Paso County/Monument Ridge
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 9:20 PM MST
- Where
- Northern El Paso County/Monument Ridge forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.992, -105.637 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Pueblo and Eastern Fremont Counties/Pueblo and Vicinity
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 9:20 PM MST
- Where
- Pueblo and Eastern Fremont Counties/Pueblo and Vicinity forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.867, -105.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Southern El Paso County/Colorado Springs and Vicinity
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 3:40 PM MST
- Where
- Southern El Paso County/Colorado Springs and Vicinity forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.240, -105.810 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Upper Arkansas River Valley/Salida and Vicinity
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 3:40 PM MST
- Where
- Upper Arkansas River Valley/Salida and Vicinity forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.832, -106.332 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Western Fremont and Northern Custer Counties
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 3:40 PM MST
- Where
- Western Fremont and Northern Custer Counties forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.484, -106.500 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Wet Mountains
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 9:20 PM MST
- Where
- Wet Mountains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.578, -106.085 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Teller County/Rampart Range/Pikes Peak
- When
- April 2, 5:30 AM MST to 9:20 PM MST
- Where
- Teller County/Rampart Range/Pikes Peak forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 37.484, -106.500 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Northern San Luis Valley/Del Norte and Vicinity
- When
- April 2, 10:00 AM MST to 3:40 PM MST
- Where
- Northern San Luis Valley/Del Norte and Vicinity forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.747, -106.194 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Snow, Teller County/Rampart Range/Pikes Peak | 1998-04-02 | 12 | Female | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
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
- Flash Flood and Hail in Kansas, April 2 to 14, 1998
- High Wind in New Mexico, April 2, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Utah, April 2, 1998
- High Wind in Texas, April 2, 1998
- Winter Storm in Colorado, April 2, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Mississippi, April 2 to 3, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Oklahoma, April 2 to 3, 1998
- Blizzard in Alaska, April 2, 1998
- Flash Flood in Pennsylvania, April 2, 1998
- Flood in Pennsylvania, April 2, 1998
- Flash Flood in Vermont, April 2, 1998
- Flood in New York, April 2 to 4, 1998
More
Every storm in Colorado in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, April 1998
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: 5642016, 5642017, 5642018, 5642321, 5642322, 5642323, 5642324, 5642325, 5642326, 5642451.