Colorado, 1998

Winter Storm in Colorado, March 6 to 7, 1998

March 6 to 7, 1998 · NWS PUB · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

reaching the southeast plains late on the morning of the 7th. In addition to the heavy snowfall, strong gusty winds at 15 to 35 mph produced widespread blowing and drifting snow across the mountains.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

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 winter storm moved across southern Colorado...reaching the southeast plains late on the morning of the 7th. In addition to the heavy snowfall, strong gusty winds at 15 to 35 mph produced widespread blowing and drifting snow across the mountains. Snowfall totals ranged from 18 to 26 inches at Wolf Creek Pass and the town of Creede in the Eastern San Juan and La Garita mountains...8 to 10 inches at Cuchara in the southern Sangre de Cristo mountains...6 to 8 inches in Westcliffe and at Rye and Beulah in western Pueblo county and in the Wet mountains...and 4 to 6 inches across the southern foothills, including Walsenburg and Trinidad.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, La Garita Mountains

When
March 6, 5:00 AM MST to March 7, 12:00 PM MST
Where
La Garita Mountains forecast zone
Coordinates
38.677, -106.274 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Eastern San Juan Mountains

When
March 6, 5:00 AM MST to March 7, 12:00 PM MST
Where
Eastern San Juan Mountains forecast zone
Coordinates
38.747, -106.194 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains

When
March 7, 5:00 AM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where
Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains forecast zone
Coordinates
37.832, -106.332 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains

When
March 7, 5:00 AM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where
Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains forecast zone
Coordinates
37.778, -106.530 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Wet Mountains

When
March 7, 8:00 AM MST to 8:00 PM MST
Where
Wet Mountains forecast zone
Coordinates
37.578, -106.085 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Upper Huerfano River Basin/Walsenburg and Vicinity

When
March 7, 9:00 AM MST to 8:00 PM MST
Where
Upper Huerfano River Basin/Walsenburg and Vicinity forecast zone
Coordinates
37.426, -104.809 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Upper Purgatoire River Basin/Trinidad and Vicinity

When
March 7, 9:00 AM MST to 8:00 PM MST
Where
Upper Purgatoire River Basin/Trinidad and Vicinity forecast zone
Coordinates
37.426, -104.809 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Storm
A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Colorado in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, March 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: 5632419, 5632420, 5632592, 5632593, 5632594, 5632595, 5632596.