The National Weather Service issued a weather alert at 4:09 p.m. on Wednesday for winds and gusty outflow until 5 p.m. for the Western Slope.
Residents should prepare for wind gusts of up to 55 mph.
“At 4:08 p.m., Doppler radar tracked gusty outflow winds from nearby storms along a line extending from 7 miles west of Fruita to near Grand Junction to 8 miles southeast of Palisade to 7 miles southeast of Collbran to 18 miles south of Silt. Movement was southeast at 20 mph,” says the NWS. “Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects and result in reduced visibility.”
Locations impacted by the alert include Grand Junction, Orchard City, Palisade, Cedaredge, Fruitvale, Clifton, Whitewater, Ragged Mtn, Glade Park, Redlands, Skyway, Plateau City, Grand Mesa, Eckert and Orchard Mesa. This includes the following highways: Interstate 70 in Colorado near mile marker 25. U.S. Highway 50 in Colorado between mile markers 32 and 60. Colorado 65 between mile markers 3 and 48. Colorado 133 between mile markers 34 and 48. Colorado 141 between mile markers 139 and 162.
The NWS adds, “If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.”
The full list of affected locations includes:
• Grand Valley
• Debeque to Silt Corridor
• Grand and Battlement Mesas
• Gore and Elk Mountains/Central Mountain Valleys
• Central Gunnison and Uncompahgre River Basin
• West Elk and Sawatch Mountains
• Uncompahgre Plateau/Dallas Divide
Source: The National Weather Service