The National Weather Service issued a freeze warning Thursday for Cortez and the Four Corners starting at midnight and lasting until 9 a.m. Friday.
“Tonight in the Cortez area, the low is going to be in the upper 20s to low 30s,” Brianna Bealo, forecaster for the NWS office in Grand Junction, said. “You’ll probably see those temperatures between 2 or 3 in the morning through 8 or so in the morning.”
She cautioned residents to protect sensitive plants and outdoor plumbing, adding the NWS is keeping an eye on temperatures Friday night in case of another freeze.
Precipitation could fall over Cortez and surrounding areas in the coming days as temperatures warm into the 70s over the weekend before cooling on Monday.
“You might see a few showers tomorrow afternoon,” Bealo said, mentioning possible rain or thunderstorms next week.
Friday sees a 20% chance of precipitation while Sunday and Monday see a similar likelihood for rain and thunder.
Local weather spotter Jim Andrus is not optimistic.
“The storm that is bringing this precipitation is too far south,” Andrus said, adding it would likely hit southern and central New Mexico.
“Maybe we’ll get a tenth of an inch of rain. I wouldn’t expect more than that,” Andrus said. “We’re still not getting too much else regarding this drought from the weather gods.”
He said limited vegetation around the city is visibly suffering through the drought.
Andrus said he estimates the month of supposed April showers brought a total of 1.25 inches of water to Cortez – not optimal for May flowers.
“I sure wish we could come up with a good news weather report, but this drought makes it hard to that,” Andrus said.
The initial storm that hit Cortez on April 1 seems like a prank to him now.
“April is living up to its April Fools’ reputation,” Andrus said.
avanderveen@the-journal.com
