JACKSON, Wyo. — It has been a stormy week here in Jackson Hole with snow falling from Saturday through Wednesday closing roads and area schools and delaying operations at local ski resorts.
According to Buckrail Meteorologist Alan Smith, the Tetons picked up 5-7 inches at the JHMR plot on Saturday night, 5-12 inches on Sunday night, 5-10 inches on Monday-Monday night and another 7-12 inches in the Tetons during the strongest part of the storm Tuesday. Tuesday morning, snow was falling at a rate of 2 inches per hour.
Due to the heavy snowfall and strong winds, Teton Pass was closed on Tuesday, Feb. 21 for nearly 12 hours. The pass initially closed at 3 a.m. for avalanche mitigation but was extended until 2 p.m. due to dangerous driving conditions.
We asked the Buckrail community how the closure affected them.
Did you have to call out of work? Were you able to work remotely today? Did you sleep on a friend’s couch or does your employer provide a place for your to stay?
Responses were taken anonymously. Eleven people said they were able to work remotely on Tuesday but another ten noted that they couldn’t make it to work and therefore weren’t paid.
One person said, “I lost a day of work. Fun snow day but that doesn’t pay the bills.” And another said, “I didn’t work and will probably miss my end-of-season bonus.”
A person who identified themselves as an employer said, “I had two staff members that could not make it to work. However, do to school closures in Jackson and roads the remainder of [the] staff could not work. The weather everywhere was the #1 reason for shutting down all work.”
Someone else shared that the closure had multiple impacts on their family. “We live in Driggs. My husband missed his orthopedic appointment he had been waiting a month for to occur and had to cancel appt b/c of the closure. I slept on my friend’s couch away from home for three nights in order to make sure I could be at work in [Jackson]”
With schools closed, a few people noted that working remotely or having family help with childcare helped them.
“Victor resident who works on the WYO side most days. I had the ability that day to work remotely, which was good because Teton Valley schools were closed Tuesday and Wednesday.”
A few people said they drove around. One person said they had no issues while another said, “left at 9:30 and got to work at 2:00 p.m. No visibility over Pine Creek pass. Someone hauling a flat trailer passed me, cut me off and ran me off the road near alpine. Took around 40 minutes to get unstuck. There were cops pulling semis with tow straps. First and last time I am ever driving around lol.”
And one person said they opted to get out of dodge, “I saw this coming and went to Cabo to avoid things.”
The full list of responses is available below:
