211 WWUS45 KPUB 030345 WSWPUB URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO 930 PM MDT WED MAY 2 2001 ...SPRING STORM SYSTEM SLOWLY MOVING TOWARD SOUTHERN COLORADO... .A STRONG AREA OF LOW PRESSURE WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP AND STRENGTHEN OVER UTAH TONIGHT...THEN MOVE SLOWLY INTO NORTHERN ARIZONA ON THURSDAY. A SLOW EASTWARD DRIFT IS FORECAST THURSDAY NIGHT...WITH THE LOW THEN MOVING ACROSS SOUTHERN COLORADO FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT. AHEAD OF THIS LOW...EASTERLY UPSLOPE FLOW WILL PERSIST ACROSS MOST OF SOUTHERN COLORADO...WITH WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION EXPECTED. AT THIS TIME...IT APPEARS THE GREATEST THREAT OF HEAVY SNOW WILL OCCUR LATE THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND THURSDAY NIGHT...ALTHOUGH OCCASIONAL LIGHT TO MODERATE SNOWFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE TONIGHT. SNOW LEVELS MAY FALL TO AROUND 6000 FEET TONIGHT...THEN REMAIN BETWEEN 5000 AND 6000 FEET THURSDAY. SNOW LEVELS COULD FALL TO SLIGHTLY BELOW 5000 FEET THURSDAY NIGHT. THERE IS STILL MUCH UNCERTAINTY CONCERNING THE WEATHER SYSTEM'S STRENGTH AND SPEED OF MOVEMENT...WHICH WOULD AFFECT THE AMOUNT AND LOCATION OF THE HEAVY SNOW. IF THE STORM MOVES SLOWER THAN EXPECTED...ENOUGH WARM AIR MAY RETURN TO THE LOWER ELEVATIONS OF EASTERN COLORADO TO CHANGE PRECIPITATION TO RAIN AT ELEVATIONS BELOW 6000 FEET. CITIES ALONG THE INTERSTATE 25 CORRIDOR...SUCH AS COLORADO SPRINGS...PUEBLO AND TRINIDAD...WILL BE VERY CLOSE TO THE SNOW LEVEL AND COULD SEE RAIN OCCASIONALLY MIXING WITH THE SNOW...WHICH WOULD GREATLY DIMINISH SNOW TOTALS. A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE...CAUSING POSSIBLE HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS. IF YOU ARE PLANNING TRAVEL THROUGH THE WATCH AREA...LISTEN FOR THE LATEST WEATHER FORECAST AND CHECK ON ALTERNATE TIMETABLES OR ROUTES. DIAL 1/877/315/7623 FOR COLORADO ROAD CONDITIONS. THE WEB SITE FOR THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO IS WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/PUB COZ058-059-065>075-031030- EASTERN SAWATCH MOUNTAINS, INCLUDING WESTERN LAKE AND WESTERN CHAFFEE CO-LEADVILLE AND VICINITY-NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY/MONUMENT RIDGE-NORTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS-PUEBLO AND EASTERN FREMONT COUNTIES/PUEBLO AND VICINITY-SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY/COLORADO SPRINGS AND VICINITY-SOUTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS-TELLER COUNTY/RAMPART RANGE/PIKE'S PEAK-UPPER ARKANSAS RIVER VALLEY/SALIDA AND VICINITY-UPPER HUERFANO RIVER BASIN/WALSENBURG AND VICINITY-UPPER PURGATOIRE RIVER BASIN/TRINIDAD AND VICINITY-WESTERN FREMONT AND NORTHERN CUSTER COUNTIES-WET MOUNTAINS- INCLUDING...COLORADO SPRINGS...PUEBLO...SALIDA...TRINIDAD AND WALSENBURG 930 PM MDT WED MAY 2 2001 ...WINTER STORM WATCH FOR LATE TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT... LOOK FOR OCCASIONAL RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS ALONG AND WEST OF INTERSTATE 25 OVERNIGHT...WITH THE SNOW LEVEL AROUND 6000 FEET. MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS COULD SEE ACCUMULATIONS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES BY MORNING. SNOW SHOULD BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD...AND MAY BE HEAVY AT TIMES...BY THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATIONS ARE POSSIBLE...BUT COULD CHANGE IF THERE IS ANY CHANGE IN THE STORM TRACK. $$ PETERSEN  211 WWUS45 KPUB 030345 WSWPUB URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO 930 PM MDT WED MAY 2 2001 ...SPRING STORM SYSTEM SLOWLY MOVING TOWARD SOUTHERN COLORADO... .A STRONG AREA OF LOW PRESSURE WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP AND STRENGTHEN OVER UTAH TONIGHT...THEN MOVE SLOWLY INTO NORTHERN ARIZONA ON THURSDAY. A SLOW EASTWARD DRIFT IS FORECAST THURSDAY NIGHT...WITH THE LOW THEN MOVING ACROSS SOUTHERN COLORADO FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT. AHEAD OF THIS LOW...EASTERLY UPSLOPE FLOW WILL PERSIST ACROSS MOST OF SOUTHERN COLORADO...WITH WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION EXPECTED. AT THIS TIME...IT APPEARS THE GREATEST THREAT OF HEAVY SNOW WILL OCCUR LATE THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND THURSDAY NIGHT...ALTHOUGH OCCASIONAL LIGHT TO MODERATE SNOWFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE TONIGHT. SNOW LEVELS MAY FALL TO AROUND 6000 FEET TONIGHT...THEN REMAIN BETWEEN 5000 AND 6000 FEET THURSDAY. SNOW LEVELS COULD FALL TO SLIGHTLY BELOW 5000 FEET THURSDAY NIGHT. THERE IS STILL MUCH UNCERTAINTY CONCERNING THE WEATHER SYSTEM'S STRENGTH AND SPEED OF MOVEMENT...WHICH WOULD AFFECT THE AMOUNT AND LOCATION OF THE HEAVY SNOW. IF THE STORM MOVES SLOWER THAN EXPECTED...ENOUGH WARM AIR MAY RETURN TO THE LOWER ELEVATIONS OF EASTERN COLORADO TO CHANGE PRECIPITATION TO RAIN AT ELEVATIONS BELOW 6000 FEET. CITIES ALONG THE INTERSTATE 25 CORRIDOR...SUCH AS COLORADO SPRINGS...PUEBLO AND TRINIDAD...WILL BE VERY CLOSE TO THE SNOW LEVEL AND COULD SEE RAIN OCCASIONALLY MIXING WITH THE SNOW...WHICH WOULD GREATLY DIMINISH SNOW TOTALS. A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE...CAUSING POSSIBLE HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS. IF YOU ARE PLANNING TRAVEL THROUGH THE WATCH AREA...LISTEN FOR THE LATEST WEATHER FORECAST AND CHECK ON ALTERNATE TIMETABLES OR ROUTES. DIAL 1/877/315/7623 FOR COLORADO ROAD CONDITIONS. THE WEB SITE FOR THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO IS WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/PUB COZ058-059-065>075-031030- EASTERN SAWATCH MOUNTAINS, INCLUDING WESTERN LAKE AND WESTERN CHAFFEE CO-LEADVILLE AND VICINITY-NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY/MONUMENT RIDGE-NORTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS-PUEBLO AND EASTERN FREMONT COUNTIES/PUEBLO AND VICINITY-SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY/COLORADO SPRINGS AND VICINITY-SOUTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS-TELLER COUNTY/RAMPART RANGE/PIKE'S PEAK-UPPER ARKANSAS RIVER VALLEY/SALIDA AND VICINITY-UPPER HUERFANO RIVER BASIN/WALSENBURG AND VICINITY-UPPER PURGATOIRE RIVER BASIN/TRINIDAD AND VICINITY-WESTERN FREMONT AND NORTHERN CUSTER COUNTIES-WET MOUNTAINS- INCLUDING...COLORADO SPRINGS...PUEBLO...SALIDA...TRINIDAD AND WALSENBURG 930 PM MDT WED MAY 2 2001 ...WINTER STORM WATCH FOR LATE TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT... LOOK FOR OCCASIONAL RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS ALONG AND WEST OF INTERSTATE 25 OVERNIGHT...WITH THE SNOW LEVEL AROUND 6000 FEET. MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS COULD SEE ACCUMULATIONS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES BY MORNING. SNOW SHOULD BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD...AND MAY BE HEAVY AT TIMES...BY THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATIONS ARE POSSIBLE...BUT COULD CHANGE IF THERE IS ANY CHANGE IN THE STORM TRACK. $$ PETERSEN