AURORA | With close to a foot of snow expected by mid-day across the Aurora area Tuesday, Aurora Public Schools and Cherry Creek School District canceled all classes for Feb. 2.

All APS schools, including Pickens Technical College, will be closed Tuesday and all day and evening activities canceled, with the district sending a simple message to students and staff: “Stay home.”

Cherry Creek School District’s closure includes all before and after-school day care programs will be closed, and all activities at district facilities are canceled.

For older students, the Community College of Aurora campuses in Aurora and at Lowry will not open until 5 p.m. Tuesday. For the youngest students, the City of Aurora’s preschool programs will be closed, in keeping with the APS and Cherry Creek closures today.

Beyond the schools, Arapahoe County announced the Byers branch of the Clerk & Recorder’s office would be closed Tuesday, while all other county government offices would delay opening until 10 a.m.

“Road conditions are currently icy and some roads may be icy during the morning commute,” a release from the county read. “Employees and citizens are asked to drive slow and give yourself plenty of time to arrive to work safely.”

The Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial and county courts in Littleton were set to open late, but officials later decided to close both facilities due to the storm. The Adams County Justice Center is set to operate on a normal schedule as of about 8 a.m., according to the state court website.

At the Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado School of Medicine is starting two hours late. Children’s Hospital Colorado and University of Colorado Hospital are operating on a normal schedule.

Buckley Air Force Base is closed to non-mission-essential personnel Tuesday, according to Col. John Wagner on account of limited visibility and high winds on and near the base.

Aurora police announced the city was on accident alert shortly before 6 p.m. Monday following a rash of injury accidents during the evening commute hours.

Aurora city officials posted on Facebook this morning that many areas of the city received an additional five t0 six inches of snow accumulation overnight, but the issue for city snow plows has been “a persistent 15 to 20 mph wind” that has left some roads snow packed as the wind blows away deicing chemicals from the roadway.

The closures come as a powerful storm has blanketed Colorado with several inches of snow, and cold overnight temperatures are setting the stage for what will likely be a slick conditions for the Denver-Aurora metro area.

National Weather Service meteorologist Kyle Fredin said the storm was expected to drop up to 10 inches of snow in Denver by the time it moves out of the area late Tuesday morning, heading toward Kansas and Nebraska.

“The good assumption is that rush hour is going to be tricky,” Fredin said, adding that drivers should be careful of ice that is hidden under a fresh layer of snow.

Snow also was falling in parts of Wyoming, New Mexico and Arizona, and it’s expected to spread into Iowa on Tuesday, a day after voters gathered for the state’s presidential caucuses.

The weather system that blew in from California steadily dumped snow on the Denver area Monday, forcing airlines to cancel about a third of the flights at the city’s airport. Transportation officials closed a handful of roads, including a long section of Interstate 70, in eastern Colorado on Monday night because of drifting snow and whiteout conditions.

Colorado’s mountains have gotten plenty of snow so far this winter. Some experts believe that is the result of an El Nino weather pattern, a natural warming in the Pacific Ocean that interacts with the atmosphere.

Jason Nonemaker was in Aspen for a work trip and said the heavy snow has delayed his travel plans for three days.

“This is the most snow I’ve ever seen here in Aspen,” he said. “This has been unbelievable.”

— The Aurora Sentinel contributed to this report.

CLOSURES AND DELAYS:
  • AURORA PUBLIC SCHOOLS: All schools closed, all activities canceled.
  • CHERRY CREEK SCHOOLS: All schools closed, all activities canceled.
  • ARAPAHOE COUNTY GOVERNMENT: Offices will open at 10 a.m., Byers Clerk & Recorder office closed.
  • CITY OF AURORA: City preschool programs closed, all other offices on normal schedule.
  • BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE: Closed for non-mission-essential personnel.
  • AURORA MENTAL HEALTH CENTER: Offices opening at 10 a.m.
  • COMMUNITY COLLEGE OF AURORA: Campuses will open at 5 p.m.
  • LOTUS SCHOOL FOR EXCELLENCE: Closed Tuesday.
  • REGIS JESUIT HIGH SCHOOL: Closed Tuesday.