At a Glance
- Weekend travelers are being urged to get where they need to be before Friday evening.
- Denver International Airport said it is expecting flight delays and cancellations.
- Hundreds of utility workers and contractors are on standby for possible power outages.
Motorists planning weekend travel are being urged to get where they need to be before Friday evening because of a winter storm that is expected to dump multiple feet of snow in parts of Colorado, Wyoming and western Nebraska.
Heavy accumulations are possible along Interstate 70, I-25 and other highways in the foothills and the Front Range, the Colorado Department of Transportation warned.
The department said it is likely to close these roadways for safety reasons depending on the severity of the storm, which has been named Winter Storm Xylia (pronounced ZEYE-lee-uh) by The Weather Channel.
Snowplow crews will focus on clearing I-25, I-70 and other interstates. Secondary routes will not be plowed until the worst of the storm has passed, the department said.
(FORECAST: Potentially Historic Blizzard in the Rockies and High Plains This Weekend)
The city of Denver plans to deploy plows as needed throughout the storm beginning overnight Thursday into Friday.
"With significant snowfall amounts anticipated, we request that you please don’t drive if you don’t have to drive and give the plows plenty of space to operate," a city news release said.
Denver International Airport said it is expecting flight delays and cancellations because of the storm and it urged travelers to check the status of their flights with their airlines.
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United, Southwest and Frontier, among others, have warned of possible disruptions, and they have waived fees for people who need to change tickets originally booked for this weekend.
Denver Public Schools Superintendent Dwight Jones told KMGH students could get a snow day Monday if the storm this weekend makes conditions unsafe. The district would turn to remote learning on Tuesday and any days afterward if unsafe conditions linger.
Electric utility Xcel Energy said it has hundreds of employees and contractors on standby in case the storm causes power outages.
Ranchers are also preparing their herds for the storm.
Just outside of Loveland, Colorado, Josh Ciardullo put out extra hay and filled water tanks for the cattle at Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch.
"We’re kind of at the mercy of what Mother Nature throws at you and you do the best you can," Ciardullo told KUSA. "Right now, we’re just providing some extra hay, grass and alfalfa so when the weather gets cold they have some extra calories."
Ciardullo said he hopes no calves are born during the storm.
The National Weather Service office in Cheyenne, Wyoming, warned ranchers to expect severe impacts to newborn livestock.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
