Winter weather waves over New Mexico

GLORIETA, N.M. (KRQE) - The storm that hit new Mexico Friday is still dropping snow in some parts but appears to be slowing down a bit.

Think of it as a break, though, because another storm is expected later Friday night and into Saturday.

Interstate 25 over Glorieta Pass took a pounding, but by late afternoon the pavement was only slushy in spots with driving conditions improved.

Overnight freezing, however, was likely to make driving dicey in advance of the second storm.

Online:  KRQE.com Winter Weather Resource Guide » (Road conditions, weather, ski areas and more.)

Late Friday afternoon the New Mexico Department of Transportation listed driving conditions as difficult from Silver City to Gallup in the southwest and west, across northern counties from near Dulce to Taos and Raton, in the Jemez Mountains between Los Alamos and Cuba and along the eastern side of the Manzano Mountains.

Several inches of snow and high winds combined to close 28 miles of State Route 72 across Johnson Mesa from Yankee near Raton east to Folsom, NMDOT reported.

Elsewhere conditions ranged from wet to slushy on parts of Interstate 40 east of Albuquerque, I-25 from Glorieta to Raton and on U.S. Highway 54 in the high country on either side of Corona.

New Mexico State Police reported no major problems in the area earlier in the day as snow covered roads and a lot of people decided just to stay home.

A few plows were out including one Glorieta resident clearing neighbor's driveways.

There was enough snow Mary Valencia stayed home and spent the afternoon shoveling her driveway.

"It covered my shoes," Valencia told KRQE News 13.  "I've been out here for a good hour having a blast."

Final snow totals have not been reported yet, but by early morning the Mogollon area in the Gila National Forest topped the list with 9 inches followed by nearby Luna with 8 inches.

Afternoon reports included 9 inches at Angel Fire and 7 inches in Chama.

Rain and wind were the stories in the east where a gust clocked at 64 mph blasted by south of Roswell.  Pleasant Hill north of Clovis tallied nearly an inch of hail.

With the storm arriving from the southwest people could enjoy the beauty of the snow and welcome moisture without bitterly cold temperatures.

Still...

"We just try to stay inside and stay warm," Javier Medina of Glorieta said.

It's pretty windy right now - but it's not too cold.

Santa Fe also got hit in the early morning hours.

The entire city saw some heavy snow showers, but the western part of the city seemed to get hit a little harder.

Some of that snow melted with warming temperatures, but the storm brought more as the day progressed.

Pojoaque and Española also saw streets become snowpacked and icy.

Much of that has been cleared, but there's still that concern about them refreezing once the temperatures drop again.

The Santa Fe Public Schools district canceled several Friday and Saturday activities because of the weather:

• Middle School Girls Basketball Tournament, De Vargas Middle School, Friday and Saturday, canceled.
• Varsity Wrestling Tournament, Capital High School, Saturday, canceled.
• Junior Varsity Boys Basketball teams cancel travel to Bernalillo Tournament Friday and Saturday.
• Middle School Wrestling Tournament, Saturday, canceled.
• Santa Fe Swim Meet, Genoveva Chavez Community Center, Friday events canceled.  Saturday events to proceed.
• Santa Fe High School’s Winter Fest Friday evening canceled.

Santa Fe school events not canceled:

• Capital City Tournament, Santa Fe High School, Friday and Saturday.
• Santa Fe High Schools 2012 Musical Theater Showcase "I Believe," Saturday 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Reservations: (505) 467-2970.