DENVER — A surprisingly powerful snow storm hit metro Denver Thursday morning, wreaking havoc on the morning commute and causing numerous school delays and closures.

The storm came to an end mid-morning, but not before dropping 1-9″ of snow accumulation in some metro area locations.

The snow arrived quickly between 2:00 and 3:00 a.m. and fell at a rapid rate, making it difficult for plows to keep the snow from piling up on highways.

Slick conditions resulted in numerous accidents, most of them minor. (Check Denver Traffic Conditions)

Snow and wind closed westbound Interstate 70 from westbound C-470 to Silverthorne and eastbound I-70 from Vail to Idaho Springs. The interstate reopened in both directions by 10:30 a.m.

The Colorado Avalanche Information Center issued an Avalanche Warning Thursday for the Front Range mountains as well as the areas around Vail and in Summit County.

WHAT:             Free coffee is back! Once again, McDonald’s will be giving away free coffee for two weeks! They are confident that when consumers try their tasty, high quality coffee, they’ll love it! Customers can pick up a FREE Small Premium Roast Coffee from Monday, February 20 – Sunday, March 4th in the drive thru or inside the restaurant at any participating McDonald’s in Denver and the Front Range.

On Monday, February 13, 2012 the National Institutes of Health (NIH) published the fiscal year 2011 research funding for Down syndrome. The funding numbers decreased from $22 million in 2010 to $20 million in 2011 out of a total $31 billion budget. The 2010 funding levels already equated to Down syndrome being the least funded genetic condition by the NIH, something many Down syndrome organizations have been trying to reverse.