Slippin' and slidin'
Oh ... the weather outside is frightful
Keaton Curley and Kendrix Watson run up an icy hill on Green Street on Friday afternoon. Icy road conditions due to Friday morning's storm made driving a challenge. — © 2008 Gallup Independent / Brian Leddy

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Phil Stake
Staff writer

The good news is it’s over, for a week or so, according to AccuWeather meteorologist Mike Piggott.

After a single-digit dip Friday night, temperatures are expected to reach a high of 26 degrees Saturday after an overnight low near zero. A high-pressure system settling over the area will bring highs near 40 degrees Sunday afternoon.

A warm streak will give road crews and travelers a welcome reprieve before more snow is expected New Year’s Eve.

Icy roads made holiday travel hazardous after about 3 1/2 inches of snow blanketed roads Monday night and Tuesday.

As temperatures rose during the day, the snow melted, only to freeze as ice Tuesday evening. More snow Christmas Day kept road crews and emergency responders away from the friends and family who had gathered for the holiday. Between Dec. 23 and Dec. 26, weather-related accidents accounted for 47 calls to Gallup Police Department and McKinley County Sheriff’s Department. Of those, seven reported injuries, but the majority were fender benders or minor slides.

State police reported 13 accidents at 2 p.m. Friday, after 48 mph gusts blew in freezing temperatures and snow Friday morning.

“We were in Albuquerque yesterday and came back last night so we wouldn’t have to come back today,” George Kozeliski, a Gallup resident, said. “The roads going there Christmas Eve weren’t that good either.”

A winter storm crossing New Mexico brought more snow, rain and gusty winds, making travel dangerous on the northern and western sides of the state.

Interstate Highway 40 from the Arizona state line to the edge of Cibola County was icy and had packed snow in areas.

High winds and low visibility also made driving difficult Friday, according to a state Transportation Department Web site.

New Mexico Highway 285 in northern New Mexico was closed due to snow drifts, state police said. No major accidents were reported.

And Sandoval County officials said U.S. 550 from Sandoval to Cuba was snow-covered and icy.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning through Friday. Snow showers were most prevalent in the northern mountains and along the western edge of the Continental Divide.

Total snow accumulations through late Friday will range from around 3 to 6 inches at lower elevations and 10 to 18 inches above 7,500 feet. Forecasters said locally higher amounts near 2 feet may be found along the New Mexico-Colorado border and across the highest terrain.

Snow totals for the northwest plateau, including Farmington, will range between 3 and 6 inches.

Some parts of northern New Mexico had a white Christmas, including Chama, which recorded another 5 inches of snow Thursday on top of the 4 inches received on Christmas Eve.

San Juan County had its first white Christmas in 11 years. Accumulation ranged between 2 and 5 inches in the county.
Secondary roads in the Window Rock/Tse Bonito area are ice and snow-packed.

Navajo 12 from Window Rock to Fort Defiance, is ice and snow-packed while portions of Arizona Highway 264 from Window Rock toward Ganado have one lane relatively clear in either direction, though there are still large patches of ice and snow in the one passable lane.

Diné Bureau reporter Kathy Helms and the Associated Press contributed to this report.