Colorado Avalanches (Weather)

If nothing else, Coloradans are unique. Residents of Telluride gathered in the streets to kick up their heels and celebrate. What was the occasion? Nothing much ... just an avalanche.

The abundance of January snow coupled with the wide variations in temperature has made Colorado's mountains a mecca for avalanches.

Avalanches can kill, and they can shut down mountain highways, but when an avalanche is planned it is a phenomenal shot of awesomeness.

An avalanche closed I-70 in both directions after burying it under 15 feet of snow at Vail Pass.

With the Colorado weather going from hot and cold, mountains are in the avalanche danger zone.

Check this out! In an effort to help clear avalanche prone areas, the Colorado Department of Transportation is using World War II equipment.

In January alone, there have already been 11 avalanche fatalities across the West.

Sure, the snow that has bombarded the US has been bad this winter, but it's not as brutal as what these people in Italy have had to endure.

Mother Nature has unleashed an onslaught on snow and cold this season the likes of which haven't been witnessed since the last ice age.