Many Roads Remain Inaccessible With 15-Foot Drifts

The Colorado wing of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) launched a dozen aircraft on Sunday over snow-packed Colorado helping authorities search for motorists who might be stranded after a second massive winter storm blanketed the area with up to two feet of snow from Thursday through Saturday.

The crews said they were also searching for livestock caught out in the weather.

Major highways in the region remained closed Sunday morning including I70 east from Denver to Kansas, and I25 south from Pueblo to New Mexico. (We are now giving ANN's managing editor Rob Finfrock the benefit of the doubt. He says he is "stuck" at home after driving to Albuquerque for a holiday visit with family.)

Although plowing crews have been working non-stop since the storm struck, temperatures have remained below freezing keeping the snow from sticking and allowing strong winds to blow the fluffy stuff into drifts of truly remarkable dimensions -- 15 feet in some areas!

An estimated 20,000 utility customers remain without power as the storm's leading edge deposited up to 3 inches of ice across the region.

Utility spokesman Al Butkus told the Associated Press, "That ice stays there until it gets above freezing. And the temperatures aren't moving above freezing."

This storm wasn't as powerful as the Christmas blizzard which closed airports around the region for days. Airlines at Denver International only cancelled 20 percent of their flights on Thursday and Friday.

Despite that, the storm remains a memorable one. "This is a very significant storm; it's in the record books," said Scott Blair, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

Mother Nature wreaked havoc all the way from Canada to New Mexico, and as far east as Oklahoma with areas of that state's panhandle reporting 18 inches of snow.

"They don't have any reports of injuries or fatalities, however they haven't been able to get out to the outlying rural areas to check, but are now checking on the homes where they know there are elderly people or those with special needs," said Michelann Ooten, spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

CAP pilots and spotters train for aerial search missions such as Sunday's over the Rockies. Colorado wing spokesman Steve Hamilton said, "When you're spotting stranded vehicles, they're pretty easy to see from the air."

FMI: www.cap.gov