Update: Colorado Highway 14 west of Fort Collins reopens after avalanche closure
Update: 3:30 p.m. Tuesday: Colorado Highway 14 has been reopened, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
The National Weather Service reported Cameron Pass received 33.6 inches of snow as of 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 16. Nine miles south-southeast of Gould reported 30.8 inches of snow.
Original story
Colorado Highway 14 west of Fort Collins is closed in both directions due to an avalanche Tuesday morning.
A Larimer Emergency Telephone Authority alert was released about 8:15 a.m. April 16, saying the avalanche was between mile markers 61 and 78. The alert said it is unknown when the road might reopen.
The closure includes the Cameron Pass area, which includes known avalanche terrain.
Avalanche conditions are rated as considerable, or three on a scale of one to five with five being extreme, in the Cameron Pass area, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.
Western Larimer County, including where the avalanche occurred, and the higher mountains from the Wyoming state line to around Fairplay, are under a winter storm warning, according to the National Weather Service.
The warned area has seen snow and strong wind, creating snow-covered roads and slick driving conditions. Those conditions are expected to improve later Tuesday.
Snow in the mountains ending this afternoon. Strong winds expected over the plains today. #COwx pic.twitter.com/5vHOKKQFuo
— NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) April 16, 2024
Fort Collins under high wind warning for Tuesday
The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning until 6 p.m. April 16 for Fort Collins and much of the Eastern Plains.
Northwest winds of 30 to 45 mph will occur in the warned area with gusts to 65 mph possible.
Those winds could cause tree damage, power outages and difficult travel conditions due to blowing dust.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado Highway 14 west of Fort Collins closed due to avalanche
