Sunshine returns, thawing streets but spring break starts early
Elizabeth created her "first snowman ever" after last week's blizzard hit Lakewood.
LAKEWOOD – The thaw began late Friday morning as the sun warmed city streets, cutting through the snow and ice that frosted the morning commute and closed Jefferson County schools for a second day.
City Hall and the Jefferson County government center reopened at mid-morning after early closings Thursday as the brunt of the blizzard arrived. RTD resumed regular schedules during the day.
By the time the snow ended, more than a foot had piled up across Lakewood. Nearly 20 inches covered parts of Jeffco’s high country, a fairly routine event for the county’s road crews.
“A foot and a half of snow? That’s what we do,” said Mike Secary, operations manager for Jeffco’s Road and Bridge Department.
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- Elizabeth created her “first snowman ever” after last week’s blizzard hit Lakewood.
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- Lakewood’s Meadowlark park draws youngsters and their sleds to its sunny, snow-covered hillside.
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- Snow frames Addenbrooke’s Arts in the Park sculpture and pond.
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- “This is my very first snowman,” said a beaming Elizabeth as she mirrored its pose.
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- Lakewood’s Meadowlark park draws youngsters and their sleds to its sunny, snow-covered hillside.
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- Lakewood’s Meadowlark park draws youngsters and their sleds to its sunny, snow-covered hillside.
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- Lakewood’s Meadowlark park draws youngsters and their sleds to its sunny, snow-covered hillside.
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- A cross-country skier cuts a trail across Addenbrooke Park Friday morning.
The National Weather Service forecast calls for a 10 percent chance of precipitation through Monday.
Thursday’s heavy, blowing snow thwarted road crews for much of the day, quickly covering streets that had just been plowed.
Only after the sunshine returned at mid-morning did large patches of pavement began emerging from the packed snow.
Lakewood road crews operated in Winter Storm Operations mode for about 24 hours.
Public Works director Jay Hutchison fielded all the city’s snow clearing equipment and mustered contractors with motor graders to in the battle to keep up with the blizzard.
Lakewood snow removal crews plow about 500 miles of the city’s roads and streets in heavy snow events, operating 25 plows.
Secary’s Road and Bridge crews plow 3,500 lane miles when snow covers the county’s roads, using 81 crews operating dump trucks equipped with plows and sanders, plow wielding four-wheel drive vehicles and motor graders.
Most of the county equipment is used in the high country, where snow accumulations are usually greater, Secary said.
The storm, the area’s heaviest snow producer of this winter’s very dry snow season, didn’t worry Jeffco’s crews.
” I called the District 3 shop, the Evergreen group, about noon (Wednesday) to see if they have everything they need and the supervisor said the guys were actually chomping at the bit because they might have some real snow to plow,” Secary said.
