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Snowstorm in Colorado leads to dangerous driving conditions and broken branches, CDOT issues warning for Denver area

Dry across Colorado tonight before mountain snow returns tomorrow 03:10

A large part of the Denver metro area woke up Thursday to a thick layer of heavy, wet snow. The snow broke tree branches and caused dangerous driving conditions.

 

Southern foothills hardest hit by Colorado snowstorm

Snow will continue Thursday on the Eastern Plains for several more hours and could linger into the early afternoon. But the snow event is now over for the Denver metro area.

As expected, the southern foothills were the hardest hit area with more than foot of snow from Highway 285 up to Highway 119.

Denver's official total at Denver International Airport was 7.1 inches, which is the highest total from any storm so far this season. 

We've now received about 40% of our seasonal snowfall with our biggest snow months yet to come.

By Ashton Altieri
 

Coloradans help other Coloradans during snowstorm, while wearing shorts(!!)

As the heavy snow was falling late Wednesday night in Thornton, some folks in Thornton came to the aid of a stuck driver off of 104th Avenue.

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CBS

CBS News Colorado photographer Mark Neitro was there as the icy conditions made it very difficult to get the car unstuck.

And in very Colorado fashion, one of the folks helping out was wearing shorts.

By CBSColorado.com Staff
 

CDOT warns drivers to delay morning commutes

CDOT warned drivers in Colorado to delay morning commutes on Thursday after the overnight snowfall impacted roads into the morning.  According to a CDOT press release, heavy, wet snow was impacting roads all over the state from the Denver metro area, the Front Range and along the I-70 mountain corridor. Conditions were also adverse out on the Eastern Plains.

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CDOT

CDOT says its crews have been plowing roads nonstop, but they remained slick on Thursday morning, so it was important to take it slow and leave plenty of following distance between other vehicles sharing the roadways, including staying safely behind plows as they work to make road conditions safer. 

It was also important to have the appropriate tires for the weather conditions on the road. 

On Thursday in particular, CDOT reported "extremely treacherous conditions" on US-285 between Conifer and Aspen.  

"CDOT has about 112 plows in Region 1 alone; that covers the Denver region and the I-70 mountain corridor from Golden to the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel. More plows are out statewide," CDOT shared in its release.

CDOT crews were actively working on 12-hours shifts to work toward clearing the state roads after the snowfall to lessen impacts for drivers.

By CBSColorado.com Staff
 

Heavy, wet snow damages trees in Denver metro area

The heavy web snow that fell Wednesday night and Thursday morning in the Denver metro area damaged numerous trees.

Heavy, wet snow damages trees in Denver metro area 01:36

Many residents after daybreak on Thursday morning were assessing damage from broken branches.

So far it doesn't appear there are many power outages

By CBSColorado.com Staff
 

Snowstorm leaves "Christmas card vibes"

By CBSColorado.com Staff
 

Deer enjoy the snow in Coal Creek Canyon

Well, we don't know if they were really enjoying the snow, but this was a pretty scene nonetheless in Coal Creek Canyon on Thursday morning.

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CBS
By CBSColorado.com Staff
 

Many Colorado businesses and government buildings delay openings due to snow

Several businesses and government buildings delayed their openings on Thursday due to the heavy snowfall overnight. Here's the CBS News Colorado list, as of 8:30 a.m.

*Please note that there may be other closures and delays in place. Please check individual websites for more information.

ACTION CENTER: Opening at 1:00 PM
ARAPAHOE COUNTY GOVT: Opening at 10:00 AM
ARAPAHOE LIBRARY DIST: Opening at 10:00 AM
Aurora Mental Health Center: Delayed 2 hours
BEAR CREEK LAKE PARK: Opening at 10:00 AM
BROOMFIELD CITY & COUNTY: Opening 10AM
CASTLE ROCK SENIOR CENTER: Opening at 10:00 AM
CHERRY CREEK SCHOOL DIST: Closed Today
CITY OF BOULDER: Opening at 10:00 AM
CITY OF CENTENNIAL: Opening at 10:00 AM
CITY OF LAKEWOOD: Delayed 2 hours
CREDIT UNION OF DENVER: Opening at 10:30 AM
DENVER COLLEGE OF NURSING: Closed Today
DENVER VARO: Delayed 2 hours
DOUGLAS COUNTY GOVERNMENT OFFICES: Delayed 2 hours
DOUGLAS COUNTY LIBRARIES: Opening at 10:00 AM
EVERGREEN PARK & REC DIST: Delayed 2 hours
Foothills Animal Shelter Program Locations: Opening at 12:00 PM
GILPIN COUNTY GOVERNMENT: Opening at 10:00 AM
JEFFERSON COUNTY GOV: Opening at 10:00 AM
State of Colorado Gov't Offices: Opening at 10:00 AM
STATE OF COLORADO OFFICES: Delayed 2 hours
TRI-COUNTY HEALTH DEPT: Delayed 2 hours
Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum: Opening at 12:00 PM
By CBSColorado.com Staff
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