ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Tens of thousands of people in New Mexico were without power Thursday as the first major winter storm of the season rolled across the northern two-thirds of the state and into Colorado, bringing with it snow and fierce winds that forced schools and government offices to close.
Dozens of crews with Public Service Co. of New Mexico were mobilized to address widespread outages that had been reported overnight and in the early morning hours from Albuquerque to Santa Fe and beyond. The utility urged residents to be patient, saying there were about 41,000 people still affected by the outages.
“We know any time without power is frustrating,” the company said in messages to customers. Schools in Santa Fe, Los Alamos and elsewhere across northern New Mexico canceled classes, while authorities warned people to stay off the roads. Plows were busy trying to keep major highways clear, but state police announced midday that Interstate 25 just south of the Colorado border was closed in both directions.
The National Weather Service in Albuquerque issued a blizzard warning for parts of the state and reported that more than 100 vehicles were stranded on highways in the state’s northeast corner. Forecasters warned of “very dangerous driving conditions” that were made worse by low visibility because of blowing snow. Interstate 70 across Colorado’s Eastern Plains also was closed, as residents in that state braced for what some said could be the biggest snows.
