'Extensive tree damage' in Denver following biggest May snowstorm since 2003
Heavy, wet snow damaged trees across metro Denver while totals topped 2 feet in parts of the Colorado Rockies.
This past winter may have been extremely light on snow in Denver, but the first week of May has already been historic.
A late-season snowstorm buried parts of Colorado from Tuesday into Wednesday, snarling travel, knocking out power and piling up more than 2 feet of snow in the mountains.
Snow was scarce across Colorado for much of the winter, making the storm a rare and badly needed burst of moisture for a state gripped by drought.
“This could be one of the biggest snowstorms of the season for parts of the Rockies," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski said.
In Denver, 5.8 inches of snow had accumulated at the airport by early Wednesday afternoon, making it the city’s biggest May snowstorm since 2003. On the west side of downtown, around 8 inches was reported, slowing the Wednesday morning commute and forcing some schools to close. Just north in Boulder, 11 inches was reported.
A late-season snowstorm brought heavy, wet snow that broke a tree branch that lies in the road of a neighborhood on May 6, 2026, in Lakewood, Colorado. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
The snow was slow to stick to roads, but it clung to nearly every other surface, including trees that had already leafed out for spring.
"Widespread and extensive tree damage all over the Denver metro this morning as this very wet and heavy snow continues to pile on," AccuWeather Meteorologist and Storm Chaser Tony Laubach said.
"This is what it looks like in just about every neighborhood," he added.
Snapped tree limbs that fell on vehicles in the Denver area on May 6, 2026, amid heavy snow. (AccuWeather/Tony Laubach)
More than 50,000 power outages were reported across Colorado on Wednesday morning, according to PowerOutage.us. By Thursday morning, most of the electric customers who were in the dark had power restored.
The storm also arrived well after Denver’s usual window for accumulating snow. Based on historical averages, April 22 is typically the last date the city records at least 1 inch of snowfall.
Snowfall was much heavier in the mountains, where totals topped 2 feet in the hardest-hit areas.
Estes Park, just outside Rocky Mountain National Park, measured 31 inches of snow by Wednesday morning. Near Longs Peak, one of the state's most well-known 14,000-foot mountains, 33.8 inches of snow was reported.
The storm arrived too late to make much of a difference for some ski areas across the region.
"Some resorts were forced to close the slopes early after an unusually warm winter with very limited snowfall,” Pydynowski said.
Heavy snow fell across Colorado on May 5. Forecast totals from the National Weather Service ranged from 10-24 inches and up to 30 inches in higher elevations, causing hazardous driving conditions.
The blast of wintry weather will not last long, especially in the lower elevations.
“Snow will melt quickly in Denver as temperatures climb into the 70s later this week," Pydynowski said.
In the mountains, though, the quick shift from heavy snow to warmth and sunshine could create new hazards.
"Avalanche danger in Rocky Mountain National Park will begin to rise," Rocky Mountain National Park warned. "Conditions will become very dangerous above treeline."
Snow plows clear a road in Rocky Mountain National Park buried in snow on May 5, 2026. (National Park Service)
Even with the snow, Colorado’s drought problems are far from over.
"This snow is desperately needed, but it’s not nearly enough to end the drought or solve the water supply concerns in the Colorado River Basin," Pydynowski said.
Before the storm, all of Colorado was in drought, with more than half the state in extreme drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
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