COLORADO – The winds wreaked havoc across Colorado Thursday.
On I-25, semis were being pushed around near Pueblo. Many drivers had to pull over. Strong winds also caused power outages and fallen trees. Gusts of over 50 miles per hour were seen in spots all over the region. Gusts of 84 miles per hour were seen in the small town of Stonewall west of Trinidad. And a wind gust of 98 miles per hour was reported on Monarch Pass.
There was a lot of wind damage along Highway 24. One lane was blocked by a fallen tree. State troopers had to direct traffic in places where traffic lights stopped working. Power outages caused some businesses to shut down for the afternoon in Old Colorado City, which also saw some shattered windows and doors.
The winds whipped flames from a grass fire in Lincoln County Thursday night. It burned an area near Punkin Center. Multiple agencies were able to knock it down. No homes were damaged. There’s no word on the size, or the cause. And, a grass fire burned about 20 acres of private property in Cañon City Thursday afternoon. It was at an agricultural building. There were no injuries or structure damage. Crews knocked it down in about two hours. The cause of fire is under investigation.
There were dangerous conditions along I-25 last night because of the strong winds, forcing a stretch of the interstate to be shut down. The state patrol in Castle Rock shut down both north and southbound lanes between County Line and Dry Creek Roads because of a threat that a huge Ikea sign might blow on to the interstate. The light rail was also halted. The sign was secured and one lane of the interstate reopened before 8 p.m.
The national weather service says winds are expected to die down on Friday.
