Fast-moving storm brings rain, snow to Colorado; 4 killed in weather-related wreck

Friday, April 23rd 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

DENVER (AP) _ A fast-moving storm caught Colorado by surprise, dumping more than a foot of snow on higher elevations and bringing much-needed rain to the foothills. Wet roads were being blamed for four traffic deaths.

The National Weather Service posted a winter storm warning Thursday for much of the Rocky Mountains, from Wyoming to New Mexico, and warned that up to 18 inches of snow were possible in some places.

Meteorologists were comparing the storm to one a year ago in March that brought Denver its worst blizzard in 90 years.

``It's on par with last spring's storm in terms of the amount of moisture available,'' said Bill Fortune of the weather service.

By nightfall, Grand Mesa on the Western Slope had received 16 inches and was bracing for another 4 inches. Evergreen, in the foothills west of Denver, reported nearly 10 inches.

``It's an extraordinary event setting up here,'' said John McGinley of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Forecast Systems Laboratory in Boulder. ``Last spring's event was a multi-day event. This is going to be a one-day event. That's probably the big difference.''

Rain in the Eastern Plains played a role in a fatal two-car collision on U.S. 6 about 125 miles northeast of Denver, according to the State Patrol. The four victims were not immediately identified.

Grand Junction and Pueblo broke rainfall records for the day, receiving with receiving a half-inch and .78 of an inch respectively.

``If it's not going to cure the drought, it's going to help quite a bit,'' McGinley said. ``March was a disaster for dryness, but if we get this storm the way we think it will happen, it will bring March and April amounts close to normal.''