Cold temperatures hit New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Frigid temperatures have been hitting much of the state and now New Mexicans are bracing for near record lows.

It may have been a long summer but fall is hitting the state hard.

Many places even got a good amount of snow.

According to the National Weather Service the Sandia ski area has been dusted with about four inches of snow in some spots.

However in the metro it's the cold dry wind that everyone's talking about.

“I felt like it was a long summer so it's nice that winter is finally coming,” Adrian Naranjo said.

Gusts of wind can be seen pushing around the trees at tingly beach in downtown Albuquerque.

In other parts of the state like Tucumcari, hurricane force winds of up to 75 miles an hour have been reported.

On the other side of the Sandias, gusts as high as 70 miles per hour, but the wind wasn't the only concern.

Up north some parts of the state saw snow, like along Glorietta pass, which is just west of Santa Fe

Residents in the metro bundled up for their afternoon walks and the city is likely to set a new daytime low but those braving the cold say it's long overdue.

“It’s nice it is due finally in November out of nowhere but that's New Mexico for you,” Gabriel Saavedra said.

The day-time record-low is 44 degrees set in 1992, Sunday’s high has only reached 42 degrees as of now.

Usually the metro gets about a foot of snow in the winter, with the biggest storms in December and March.

The winter storm had DOT crews on standby overnight.

Some areas like the Glorietta Pass were reporting icy spots on the roadway.