An early spring snowstorm brought heavy snow to portions of the North-Central Mountains. 5 inches at Winter Park Ski Area, 12 inches at Copper Mountain, 11 inches at Loveland Ski Area, 10 inches at Jones Pass, 9 inches at Columbine SNOTEL with 8 inches at Arapahoe Basin, Silverthorne and Zirkel SNOTEL.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS BOU wrote it up.
An early spring snowstorm brought heavy snow to portions of the North-Central Mountains. Storm totals included: 16 inches at Breckenridge Ski Area, 14 inches at Keystone Ski Area, 13.5 inches at Winter Park Ski Area, 12 inches at Copper Mountain, 11 inches at Loveland Ski Area, 10 inches at Jones Pass, 9 inches at Columbine SNOTEL with 8 inches at Arapahoe Basin, Silverthorne and Zirkel SNOTEL.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Denver/Boulder, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 28, 2:20 AM MST, 9 hours 9 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO 320 AM MDT MON MAR 28 2011 .SHORT TERM...A DISTURBANCE OVER NWRN CO WILL MOVE ACROSS THE AREA THIS MORNING WITH SOME DECENT QG ASCENT AND FAVORABLE LAPSE RATES. THE NAM...RUC AND HRRR ARE PRETTY CONFIDENT THAT A BAND OF PCPN WILL DEVELOP BY 12Z FM JUST NORTH OF DENVER TO THE WYOMING BORDER AND THEN PUSH EASTWARD ACROSS THE PLAINS THRU THE LATE MORNING HOURS. WET BULB ZEROS FROM SOUNDINGS SHOW TEMPS WILL BE COLD ENOUGH FOR PCPN TO FALL MOSTLY AS SNOW. NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION SOME SPOTS COULD GET AN INCH OR TWO OF SNOW THRU LATE MORNING MAINLY ON GRASSY SURFACES. MEANWHILE FROM DENVER SOUTH TO THE PALMER DIVIDE CHC OF PCPN LOOKS TO BE LOWER THRU THE MORNING HOURS. IN THE MTNS SHOULD CONTINUE TO SEE PERIODS OF SNOW THRU THE DAY DUE TO FAVORABLE OROGRAPHICS AND DECENT LAPSE RATES. FOR THIS AFTN WILL SEE A SFC LEE TROUGH ALONG THE FRONT RANGE WITH GUSTY WINDS DEVELOPING IN AND NR THE FOOTHILLS WHILE OVER THE PLAINS THEY WILL BE MORE SELY. APPEARS ENOUGH MOISTURE COMBINED WITH DECENT LAPSE RATES WILL ALLOW FOR SOME SCT -SHRA TO REDEVELOP BY LATE AFTN OVER THE PLAINS. HIGHS THIS AFTN SHOULD BE IN THE LOWER TO MID 50S EXCEPT POSSIBLY OVER THE FAR NERN CORNER WHERE READINGS MAY HOLD IN THE 40S. BY TONIGHT A SECONDARY DISTURBANCE WITH SOME FAVORABLE QG ASCENT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE AREA OVERNIGHT. THIS FEATURE SHOULD ENHANCE SNOW IN THE MTNS OVERNIGHT ALTHOUGH 700 MB WINDS ARE NOT VERY STG SO AMOUNTS MAY STAY BLO ADVISORY CRITERIA. EAST OF THE MTNS THERE IS NOT MUCH AGREEMENT TO THE LOW LEVEL WIND FIELDS BY TONIGHT. THE 00Z NAM SHOWED MORE OF A NNE COMPONENT TO LOW LEVEL WINDS WHILE THE GFS HAD WINDS NWLY. MEANWHILE LATEST 06Z NAM IS NOW MORE LIKE THE GFS WITH MORE OF A NWLY COMPONENT. 00Z NAM SHOWED QUITE A BIT OF PCPN OVER MOST OF NERN CO AS THE SECONDARY DISTURBANCE MOVED ACROSS OVERNIGHT WHILE GFS HAD BEST CHC OF PCPN FURTHER EAST OVER THE PLAINS AND ACROSS THE PALMER DIVIDE. MEANWHILE LATEST 06Z NAM HAS NOW ALIGNED WITH THE 00Z GFS WITH REGARDS TO PCPN. OVERALL CONFIDENCE IS NOT VERY HIGH WITH REGARDS TO TONIGHT SO WILL LEAVE PREVIOUS POPS FCST IS WITH BEST CHANCES OVER THE PLAINS AND ACROSS THE PALMER DIVIDE. ONCE AGAIN WET BULB ZEROS WILL BECOME COLD ENOUGH FOR PCPN TO FALL AS SNOW LATER THIS EVENING AT LOWER ELEVATIONS. .LONG TERM...THE UPPER LEVEL TROF WILL BE MOVING ACROSS EASTERN COLORADO TUESDAY MORNING WITH STRONG SUBSIDENCE BUILDING IN BEHIND IT FOR THE REST OF THE DAY. WILL KEEP SOME LINGERING SHOWERS ON THE FAR EASTERN PLAINS EARLY TUESDAY ALONG WITH SHOWERS IN THE MOUNTAINS. THE NEXT DISTURBANCE WILL BE RIGHT ON ITS HEELS AS ADDITIONAL MOISTURE MOVES INTO THE COLORADO MOUNTAINS BY LATE TUESDAY NIGHT. THE LONG RANGE MODELS ARE CONTINUING THE WEAKENING OF THIS SYSTEM WITH NO ADDITIONAL DEEPENING UNTIL ITS WAY EAST OF COLORADO. STILL THE MOUNTAINS WILL GET SOME ADDITIONAL SNOWFALL WITH DECENT OROGRAPHIC FLOW FROM THE NORTHWEST AT 15-25KT AND MODEST LAPSE RATES. MAY NEED SOME ADVISORIES FOR THE MOUNTAINS AS WINDS WILL BE STRONGER IN THIS SYSTEM. FOR THE NORTHEAST PLAINS...GENERALLY DOWNSLOPE FLOW FROM THE NORTHWEST WILL LIMIT PRECIP CHANCES...MAYBE A BIT BETTER EAST OF THE FRONT RANGE. WILL NEED TO DO SOME DOWNWARD ADJUSTMENT IN POPS FOR THE WEDNESDAY PERIOD IN LIGHT OF THE DOWNSLOPE FLOW. FOR THURSDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...RIDGING ALOFT WILL GRADUALLY BUILD OVER THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION WITH FRIDAY LOOKING TO BE THE DRIEST AND WARMEST DAY OF THE WEEK. MORE PACIFIC MOISTURE WILL MOVE BACK INTO COLORADO BY LATE SATURDAY AND SUNDAY FOR A CHANCE OF MORE MOUNTAIN SNOWS. LONG RANGE MODELS DO DROP A FRONTAL SYSTEM ACROSS EASTERN COLORADO WHICH MAY AID IN SHOWER DEVELOPMENT. WILL INTRODUCE A SLIGHT CHANCE HERE BUT GIVEN ORIENTATION MAY END UP BEING ANOTHER DOWNSLOPE EVENT. && .AVIATION...EARLY THIS MORNING THERE IS A WEAK LOW NR DIA AS WINDS HAVE BEEN LIGHT WLY. THIS LOW IS FCST TO MOVE EAST BY 12Z SO LIFR CONDITIONS TO THE N AND NW OF THE AIRPORT SHOULD MIGRATE THERE WAY IN OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS. HARD TO SAY IF DENSE FOG WILL DVLP IN THE 10Z-14Z TIME PERIOD OR WHETHER MAIN RESTRICTIONS WILL BE CEILINGS TO AROUND 500 FEET. THUS WILL KEEP TEMPO GROUP IN NEXT TAF. MEANWHILE COULD SEE A BAND OF SNOW DVLP BY 12Z MAINLY TO THE NORTH OF DIA HOWEVER IF THIS BAND ENDS UP FURTHER SOUTH THEN COULD SEE A QUICK INCH OF WET SNOW BETWEEN 12Z AND 15Z. MEANWHILE LATEST HRRR SHOWS LIFR/IFR CONDITIONS MAY LINGER THRU ABOUT 17Z. FOR THIS AFTN NAM...GFS AND HRRR SHOW LOW LEVEL WINDS BECOMING NWLY AND INCREASING TO 15-20 KTS BY 20Z. SINCE ALL THREE MODELS SHOW THIS HAPPENING ITS HARD TO GO AGAINST THEM AT THIS POINT SO REFLECT THIS IN THE 12Z TAF. COULD SEE A SLIGHT CHC OF A HIGH BASED -SHRA LATER THIS AFTN AS WELL. BY TONIGHT LATEST NAM AND GFS KEEP MAINLY A NWLY DOWNSLOPE COMPONENT THRU THE EVENING HOURS WITH BEST CHC OF PCPN TO THE EAST AND SOUTH OF DIA. OVERALL CONFIDENCE FOR TONIGHT IS NOT VERY HIGH WITH REGARDS TO PCPN. PREVIOUS 00Z NAM HAD A DECENT CHC OF PCPN TONIGHT OVER THE AIRPORT WITH RAIN CHANGING TO SNOW AFTER 03Z WITH UP TO AN INCH OR TWO OF ACCUMULATION BETWEEN 06Z-12Z. NOW THE 06Z NAM SHOWS VIRTUALLY NOTHING SO MODEL CONSISTENCY HAS NOT BEEN GOOD. MEANWHILE PREVIOUS NAM HAD AREAS OF LOW CLOUDS AND SOME FOG REDEVELOPING AFTER MIDNIGHT AS WEAK UPSLOPE DEVELOPED WHILE CURRENT 06Z NAM HAS NOTHING SO ONCE AGAIN NOT SURE WHAT TO BELIEVE AT THIS POINT. && .BOU WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...DENSE FOG ADVISORY UNTIL 9 AM MDT THIS MORNING FOR PORTIONS OF THE NORTHEAST PLAINS...COZ042-044-046>049. && RPK/SWE
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO 1107 AM MDT MON MAR 28 2011 COZ030>051-291200- JACKSON COUNTY BELOW 9000 FEET-WEST JACKSON AND WEST GRAND COUNTIES ABOVE 9000 FEET-GRAND AND SUMMIT COUNTIES BELOW 9000 FEET-SOUTH AND EAST JACKSON/LARIMER/NORTH AND NORTHEAST GRAND/ NORTHWEST BOULDER COUNTIES ABOVE 9000 FEET-SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST GRAND/WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST BOULDER/GILPIN/CLEAR CREEK/ SUMMIT/NORTH AND WEST PARK COUNTIES ABOVE 9000 FEET-LARIMER AND BOULDER COUNTIES BETWEEN 6000 AND 9000 FEET-JEFFERSON AND WEST DOUGLAS COUNTIES ABOVE 6000 FEET/GILPIN/CLEAR CREEK/NORTHEAST PARK COUNTIES BELOW 9000 FEET-CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PARK COUNTY-LARIMER COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/NORTHWEST WELD COUNTY-BOULDER AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES BELOW 6000 FEET/WEST BROOMFIELD COUNTY-NORTH DOUGLAS COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/DENVER/WEST ADAMS AND ARAPAHOE COUNTIES/ EAST BROOMFIELD COUNTY-ELBERT/CENTRAL AND EAST DOUGLAS COUNTIES ABOVE 6000 FEET-NORTHEAST WELD COUNTY-CENTRAL AND SOUTH WELD COUNTY-MORGAN COUNTY-CENTRAL AND EAST ADAMS AND ARAPAHOE COUNTIES- NORTH AND NORTHEAST ELBERT COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/NORTH LINCOLN COUNTY-SOUTHEAST ELBERT COUNTY BELOW 6000 FEET/SOUTH LINCOLN COUNTY-LOGAN COUNTY-WASHINGTON COUNTY-SEDGWICK COUNTY-PHILLIPS COUNTY- 1107 AM MDT MON MAR 28 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT OCCASIONAL SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS THIS AFTERNOON WITH ADDITIONAL 1 TO 3 INCHES. SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS CAN BE EXPECTED OVER THE MOUNTAIN VALLEYS AND ACROSS THE FOOTHILLS. SNOW WILL INCREASE OVER THE MOUNTAINS TONIGHT AS ANOTHER WEATHER DISTURBANCE MOVES ACROSS THE AREA. ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES CAN BE EXPECTED BY WEDNESDAY MORNING. ACROSS THE PLAINS...THERE WILL BE A SLIGHT CHANCE OF RAIN AND OR SHOWERS LATE THIS AFTERNOON. THE CHANCE FOR SNOW WILL INCREASE TONIGHT AS THE DISTURBANCE PASSES OVERHEAD. ACCUMULATIONS OF UP TO AN INCH ARE POSSIBLE IN SOME LOCATIONS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY THE LAST IN A SERIES OF UPPER LEVEL SYSTEMS WILL MOVE CROSS COLORADO ON WEDNESDAY. SNOW WILL INCREASE IN THE MOUNTAINS AGAIN LATE TUESDAY NIGHT AND CONTINUE THROUGH THURSDAY. ACROSS LOWER ELEVATIONS...ONLY ISOLATED RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED ON WEDNESDAY. HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT WILL BUILD OVER THE REGION LATE THURSDAY AND FRIDAY WITH A DRYING AND WARMING TREND THROUGH THE PERIOD. FRIDAY WILL SEE THE WARMEST TEMPERATURES OF THE WEEK. MORE MOISTURE WILL MOVE BACK INTO THE MOUNTAINS LATE SATURDAY AND SUNDAY FOR ANOTHER CHANCE OF SNOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT. D_L/RJK
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 winter weather, 1 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, March 2011
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: 287607, 287610, 287611.