Aurora, Colorado — The city was hit by an unseasonal hailstorm on Wednesday night, leaving several motorists stranded and forcing plows into action to clear massive hail drifts from key roadways near Delmar Parkway and Geneva Street, just south of Colfax Avenue.
Shortly after the storm ended, a FOX31 photojournalist on the scene documented at least one vehicle immobilized in thick accumulations of hail. The area, bordering Aurora West College Preparatory School, was particularly hard-hit.
Live footage from FOX31’s Jared Dean showed a snowplow clearing what he estimated to be more than half a foot of hail — over 6 inches (15 cm) — that had piled up like winter snow, blocking major traffic routes.
Aurora police officers, responding quickly, used tow straps attached to cruisers to help free drivers stuck in the deep hailbanks. The efforts continued as crews worked through the night to reopen roads obstructed by the icy buildup.
According to FOX31 Pinpoint Weather Chief Meteorologist Dave Fraser, this kind of event occurs when small hailstones fall during a thunderstorm and are swept by rainwater into lower-lying roadways. The hail then collects in gutters and drains, which often clog, preventing the water from carrying the icy stones away.
Fraser noted that the storm didn’t produce particularly large hail, but where it gathered with runoff, the effect was dramatic. “Those cars are probably stuck because they can’t get traction,” he explained.
Until the Thursday morning sun rises to begin melting the icy layers, the only reliable method to clear these hazards is manual shoveling or mechanical plowing — a rare but not unheard-of task for summer crews in Colorado.
