Colorado, 2022

Heavy Snow and High Wind in Colorado, March 21 to 22, 2022

March 21 to 22, 2022 · NWS PUB · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Another day of strong gusty, damaging winds across portions of southern Colorado on March 22.

Where it happened

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.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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.

Another day of strong gusty, damaging winds across portions of southern Colorado on March 22.

What forecasters said that day

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 Pueblo, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 21, 3:07 AM MST, 2 hours 53 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 21, 3:07 AM MST, 2 hours 53 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 21, 3:46 AM MST, 2 hours 14 minutes before
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In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 21, 4:57 AM MST, 1 hour 3 minutes before
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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 heavy snow, 1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Between 7500 & 11000 Ft

When
March 21, 6:00 AM MST to March 22, 6:00 AM MST
Where
Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Between 7500 & 11000 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
CoCoRaHS
Coordinates
37.426, -104.809 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy snow of 14.6 inches, 7 miles northwest of Cuchara.

Heavy Snow, Wet Mountains Between 8500 and 10000 Ft

When
March 21, 8:00 AM MST to March 22, 7:14 AM MST
Where
Wet Mountains Between 8500 and 10000 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.110, -105.070 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy snow of 11.6 inches, 7 miles northwest of San Isabel.

High Wind, Springfield Vicinity / Baca County

When
March 22, 12:59 PM MST to 1:00 PM MST
Where
Springfield Vicinity / Baca County forecast zone
Measured
59 kt (68 mph) measured gust
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
37.319, -102.560 (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.
High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Colorado in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, March 2022

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1017511, 1017512, 1014895.