An Overview on the 13 March 2019 Explosive Cyclogenesis Event over Southern Colorado and the Impact-Based Decision Support Service Provided by the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Pueblo, Colorado

A mid-latitude cyclone with a minimum central pressure of 970.4 hPa, over Lamar, Colorado, created 11 hours of blizzard conditions over northern El Paso County, a 96-mph wind gust over The City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport, and 52 inches of snowfall over Wolf Creek Ski Area. The event overview will be broken up into two main parts, the [1] cause and effect of the event, (1) Pre-Cyclogensis, (2) Explosive Cyclogensis, and (3) Orographics, as well as [2] the impact-based decision support service (IDSS) provided by the National Weather Service (NWS) Weather Forecast Office (WFO) in Pueblo, Colorado.

Results from the overview indicate that [1] lee cyclogenesis, baroclinic cyclogenesis, and an interaction from an upper-level trough located northwest of the main circulation were meteorological contributors of explosive cyclogenesis. The complex topography that resides in NWS Pueblo’s forecast responsibility, both aided in cyclone intensity and provided relief from major impacts across southern Colorado. The NWS in Pueblo, Colorado used a [2] multispectral approach for providing IDSS to core partners across southern Colorado, which included providing in-person support to El Paso County Emergency Management, real-time updates of conditions across southern Colorado, and collaboration with the Colorado Climate Center, the Weather Prediction Center, and neighboring WFOs. The 13 March 2019 explosive cyclogenesis event is a high impact event that highlights complications of synoptic and mesoscale meteorological features interacting with the complex topography of Colorado.