High winds cut power, cause crashes on I-25

Strong winds — even hurricane-force gusts — wreaked havoc in the Pikes Peak region Saturday, blowing over trucks, knocking down trees, cutting power and possibly sparking a fire that destroyed a west-side business.

A high-wind warning by the National Weather Service was in effect all day Saturday. Gusts of 50 mph were recorded in Colorado Springs, and in Monument, blasts were measured as strong as 79 mph, comparable to a Category 1 hurricane.

There were several crashes involving rolled-over semis on Interstate 25 north of Colorado Springs, slowing traffic to a crawl and briefly forcing the closure of the highway about 11:15 a.m.

No serious injuries were reported.

To the south, southbound I-25 was closed for much of the morning at Walsenburg when a semitrailer flipped over.

On the west side of Colorado Springs, wind was the likely culprit in a fire that gutted Johnson Heating and Plumbing on Busch Avenue near South 21st Street.

Power lines blew onto the large building about 11 a.m., and firefighters were called an hour later when smoke was spotted.

But after an initial search to make sure nobody was in the building, firefighters evacuated because of heavy smoke, flames bursting from windows and the possibility of electrocution, said Fire Department Lt. Jeff Sievers.

“We wanted to make sure, since there was not a life risk, just property, that nobody gets hurt,” Sievers said.

So they went into “defensive mode,” fighting the blaze from the outside. By the time the smoke stopped rising a couple of hours later, half the building had collapsed and little was left unburned.

The business is owned by Rick and Emily Johnson, who were on vacation in Arizona. A steady stream of employees and family members came by to watch the blaze, many with tears in their eyes.

“Unbelievable,” said Rhonda Wootton, Rick Johnson’s sister. “The winds just took out that power pole.”

Rick Johnson, who founded the business with his wife in 1988, was racing back to Colorado Springs after learning of the blaze.

“He’s pretty torn up. His life is burning down,” said his daughter, Molly Johnson.

But despite the loss, their thoughts were already on rebuilding, and finding a place for the 15 employees to work Monday.

“It’s a building. That’s all we lost is a building,” said general manager Gary Bechtle. “We can rebuild.”

While what sparked the fire was under investigation, Sievers said the power lines are considered the likely cause.

Power was out in the area for much of the day. Colorado Springs Utilities spokeswoman Patrice Quintero said about 3,500 lost power.

The wind also cut power to many in northern El Paso County. The Intermountain Rural Electric Association reported widespread outages at 10 a.m., including the towns of Larkspur and Palmer Lake and numerous other communities. The association expected to have all customers back on Saturday.

In Monument, officials were kept busy with downed trees and power lines.

“I can guarantee you the winds are a lot stronger than 20 or 30 mph,” said Monument police officer Michael Wolfe.

Across the region, the strongest wind recorded Saturday was a 96 mph gust in Custer County — equal to a Category 2 hurricane.

The warm Chinook winds were being pushed down the Front Range by a powerful storm system that was expected to drop up to 3 feet of snow on parts of the mountains by Monday, the same storm that brought heavy snow to the Sierras this week.

The highest totals are expected along the Continental Divide, though central Colorado could see 8 to 16 inches by this morning. Another round tonight through Monday night could bring another 8 to 18 inches. High mountain passes, including Wolf Creek, Monarch and Tennessee passes, could be treacherous.

Strong winds throughout the weekend could make for poor visibility and hazardous travel, forecasters said.

Little or no snow is expected in Colorado Springs. In fact, except for the wind, it was unseasonably warm across the Pikes Peak region, with a high of 61 degrees.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 476-1605 or scott.rappold@gazette.com