Interstate 70 reopened to eastbound travelers in Colorado early today for the first time in two days after the lingering effects of a powerful winter storm finally diminished.
The wind-driven storm piled up 6-foot snow drifts and cut visibility to zero in eastern Colorado and western Kansas before heading northeast toward the Great Lakes.
More than 400 miles of eastbound I-70 were closed for a time, from Denver to Salinas, Kan. They reopened shortly before 6 a.m. today.
Westbound lanes first closed at 2 p.m. Sunday but gradually reopened over the next two days.
The bad weather had begun to clear out of Colorado on Monday, but severe conditions in Kansas prompted officials to keep eastbound traffic halted just outside of Denver because stranded travelers were jamming the motels on the Eastern Plains.
