Hard to believe after a day of bright sunshine, but a powerful spring storm is bearing down on Colorado, due to hit this afternoon and evening.
And yet another major storm could be right behind it.
The National Weather Service is calling for rain mixed with snow today until colder nighttime temperatures turn it into heavy snow.
Jim Kalina, a National Weather Service forecaster in Boulder, said the snow will begin to fall in the metro area this afternoon and intensify overnight into Friday morning.
By the time the storm moves out Friday afternoon, the metro area could see 6 to 12 inches of snow, while the foothills south of Interstate 70 may record up to 18 inches, he said.
“Right now it’s still in the Pacific Ocean, but over the next 24 hours it will develop over the Great Basin and then deepen and dig in to the south, moving across northern New Mexico and out through Oklahoma,” Kalina said.
If metro residents aren’t tired of snow by this weekend, they should wait a little longer.
Kalina said a second storm is developing that will hit Monday, probably bringing even more snow and spanning a larger area of the state.
“There’s another one that may be in the area on Monday,” Kalina said. “It looks like it could be a major storm.”
A winter-storm watch has been issued for Denver, the Front Range, the northeastern plains and the southern foothills between late today and Friday afternoon.
The Eastern Plains, particularly the northeastern plains, will also be hit hard, with an estimated 6 to 12 inches of snow falling in blizzardlike conditions.
Areas including Akron and Burlington will be under a winter-storm warning from tonight to Saturday morning, with a threat to livestock from the heavy snow and wind.
A blizzard watch will be in effect from tonight through Friday for southeastern Colorado. Forecasts also call for 50 mph winds.
The central mountains including Breckenridge are expecting up to 18 inches of snow. A snow advisory will be in effect for the southwestern mountains.
“It’s not unusual to get a storm like this in the spring,” Kalina said.
Between storms, though, the weekend is forecast to be sunnier and warmer, with temperatures in the 50s and 60s.
