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Denver impassable after blizzard

humvee in snow
CNN's Dave Walker reviews the bad weather
icon 1 min. 57 sec. VXtreme video

Several Plains states hit hard by storm

October 26, 1997
Web posted at: 11:37 a.m. EST (1637 GMT)

DENVER (CNN) -- The season's first blizzard in the western Plains tapered off Sunday, leaving stranded motorists, six-foot snow drifts and even a ditched National Guard humvee -- one of many called out to rescue people trapped in the storm -- in its aftermath.

The blizzard blanketed Denver under 22 inches of snow by Saturday evening. It was the worst snowstorm in Denver in at least 28 years, surpassing the 16 inches recorded in 1969.

So much snow fell that one Colorado National Guard humvee had to be rescued after getting stuck in a ditch.


State of emergency in Nebraska

map

Other states were also hit hard. In Nebraska, the acting governor, Kim Robak, declared a state of emergency. Massive power outages have been reported in Omaha, Lincoln and across the state because of the storm.

A 125-mile stretch of Interstate 80 in Nebraska was closed, along with roads in Wyoming, Kansas and New Mexico.

In Colorado, several communities had power outages, but utility officials said they couldn't begin to restore service until winds died down.

One of the hardest hit areas was the most populous stretch of Colorado: the Front Range, a nearly 200-mile swath from Ft. Collins south through Denver and Colorado Springs to Pueblo, where power outages forced about 75 people to leave their cold homes for a Red Cross shelter.


A L S O :

CNN Weather: Forecast for Omaha

CNN Weather: Forecast for Denver

Officials also barred non-emergency travel along some 300 miles of the Front Range, from Wyoming to New Mexico.

Scores of cars were abandoned by drivers on several interstates. A main highway to Denver's multi-billion dollar airport, Denver International, looked like a parking lot. Meanwhile, about 2,000 people at the airport bedded down for the second night in a row.

Airline aims for full operations by afternoon

sleeping traveler

Travelers in Denver Sunday looked for better news. Bit by bit, airlines expect to be airborne again. United Airlines is aiming to be fully operational by the afternoon.

The problem, officials said, wasn't clearing the runways. Rather, flight crews couldn't get to the airport.

"We operated pretty well while we were operating," said Chuck Cannon of the Denver International Airport, "and we kept it open longer probably than we should have."

Would-be passengers at the airport, unable to leave, might have agreed. Most restaurants were closed, and some people stood in line for two hours for food. Help came from a handful of vendors, an airline kitchen pressed into service and the Red Cross.

"It was kind of the thrill of the moment for the first six hours or so, but after about 12, it stops losing its novelty," said one woman.

Among the few lucky passengers to get out of the airport were members of the Denver Broncos football team. Their charter flight to Buffalo for Sunday's game against the Bills finally boarded 10 hours behind schedule. It was the first to leave the airport since Friday night.

Broncos defensive end Neil Smith wasn't surprised. "I've never seen so much snow," the player said. "It was up to my knees." (icon 102K/8 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)

Locals offer humanitarian handouts

Fortunately for stranded travelers, goodwill was in good supply. Some residents voluntarily showed up at a bus depot to make sandwiches for people stuck there.

"We couldn't not do something," explained one man, barely looking up as he slapped sandwiches together. "These people needed a hand and we decided to give them one."

As the storm churned east, weather forecasters in Oklahoma predicted decreasing snow in the north, and rain elsewhere. Melting snow should soon replace the current wintry landscape in Denver: Temperatures were expected to hit 40 Sunday, and rise into the 50s for the rest of the week.

Correspondent Susan Candiotti contributed to this report.

 
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