Lubbock Almost Sets All-Time Snowfall Record as Hazardous Conditions Persist on Monday, December 28

Within the past 12 hours, the City of Lubbock and Lubbock County have both made Disaster Declarations due to the blizzard which passed through the region.

Lubbock Mayor Glen Robertson told KFYO fill-in host, Paul R. Beane, the decision to declare a disaster was made on late Sunday night.  Specifically, because numerous city vehicles, including two Humvees, were stuck in the snow drifts in Lubbock.

Mayor Robertson also said the snow drifts reached as high as 15 feet at Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport.  Those snow drifts trapped many heavy duty vehicles which will be used to clear the runways.

Travel is still heavily discouraged on Monday and residents are encouraged to stay at home because of blowing snow, snow drifts and ice on streets and highways.

As you can see from the KAMC Weather Lab graphic, this snowstorm ranks third all-time in recorded Lubbock weather history at 11.2".

Xcel Energy is still dealing with scattered power outages throughout the South Plains.  In Eastern New Mexico the situation is more perilous. Over 3,000 customers are still without power in the Clovis area and numerous others in Portales and Hobbs.

Lubbock Power and Light has been able to avoid widespread power outages, but there have been outages in all parts of the city since Saturday night.

A side effect from the immense snowfall across the South Plains, cattle have been able to escape their pens and fields. Lubbock County Treasurer Chris Winn took a photo of cattle walking across Spur 327 in Southwest Lubbock. Another group of cattle walked across a part of Loop 289 Sunday night.

The Lubbock Fire Department has also issued a warning to stay away from all playa lakes. According to LFD, playa lakes are freezing over and snow cover may make it difficult to tell the difference between solid ground and thin ice. No matter the temperature, playa lake water won't form into strong enough ice to walk on.