February 22, 2023 |
The blizzard of ’23 turned out to be all that forecasters warned it would be. Roads are closed, so are schools. No unnecessary travel advisories are in place across Carbon County today. Light snow began falling Tuesday afternoon. The heaviest snow began around 6 p.m. and continued through the night. More snow and wind is forecast for today.
A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect until 5 a.m. Thursday. A Wind Chill Warning is in effect from 5 p.m. this afternoon until 9 a.m. Thursday.
Wyoming is one of the first states to become engulfed in what the National Weather Service described Tuesday as 2,600-mile-long “coast to coast” storm that will impact a large portion of the country this week. It has a name, too: Winter Storm Olive. Nearly 50 million people across the country will be under a winter alert that will impact them today through Friday.
They system will bring heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain across the western and northern tier portions of the United States. Extreme impacts are likely. Historic snowfall is possible in some regions.
Here in southern Wyoming, various road closures and travel advisories are in effect.
Check the WYDOT travel information website for the most up-to-date information.
Interstate 80 is closed in both directions from Rawlins to Laramie because of winter conditions.
A rolling closure is in effect on Westbound I-80 from Cheyenne to Laramie. Eastbound I-80 Laramie to Cheyenne is open but conditions are treacherous.
Here in Carbon County, US 30/287 Walcott Junction to Rock River is closed.
WY 487 north of Medicine Bow through the Shirley Basin is closed.
US 287/WY 789 north of Rawlins to mile marker 23 is closed.
In the Platte Valley, Wyoming 130 between I-80, Walcott Jct and Wyoming 230 is closed. Wyoming 230 between Wyoming 130 and Riverside is open, but with a no unnecessary travel order in place.
I-80 between Rock Springs and Rawlins is closed.
Eastbound I-80 from Evanston to Rock Springs closed. The westbound lanes from Rock Springs to the State Line are open.
In Rawlins, with a foot of snow predicted to fall throughout the duration of the storm, a no unnecessary travel advisory has been posted within city limits.
Check the WYDOT travel information website for the most up-to-date information.
Heavy snow, icy conditions, and winds are expected to create hazardous road conditions. If you do travel, please stay as far away from all snow removal equipment and other drivers as possible due to the roads being very slick.
Carbon County Emergency Management issued a similar advisory. All unnecessary travel within the county is discouraged.
Schools in Rawlins are closed today at the order of Carbon One School Superintendent Mike Hamel. The superintendent said school is being cancelled to “help make sure students, parents and staff will be as safe as possible during the impending blizzard.”
In Carbon County School District 2, classes have been cancelled for the H.E.M. schools. Principal Eli Hobbs made the announcement.
The valley schools are closed, as well. Campuses in Encampment and Saratoga are closed. Administrators say the snow day will be made up at a later date to be determined.
