City will activate warming shelters

With snow and very cold temperatures anticipated Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022, to Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, the City of Las Cruces will activate seven warming stations at City facilities for residents seeking relief from the inclement weather.

Warming stations will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, or until further notice, at the following locations:

• Henry R. Benavidez Senior Center, 1045 McClure Road.
• Munson Senior Center, 975 S. Mesquite St.
• Sage Café Senior Center, 6121 Reynolds Drive.
• Meerscheidt Recreation Center, 1600 E. Hadley Ave.
• Frank O’Brien Papen Center, 304 W. Bell Ave.
• City Hall, 700 N. Main St.
• Thomas Branigan Memorial Library, 200 E. Picacho Ave.

The City’s Public Works Department also will take actions to deal with the snow and cold. Public Work’s response to this storm will include:

• A six-man man crew will report to the City’s Streets Management offices at midnight Thursday and will begin mobilizing equipment before the snow starts early Thursday morning. The City’s equipment includes two salt spreaders and loaders.
• Crews will begin applying salt to City streets before the snow starts, using an established priority list of roads that are close to, and leading to, hospitals, schools, overpasses, City Hall, main arterial roads, and major collector streets.
• Crews will monitor City streets throughout Thursday. Depending on the amount of moisture on roads and how low temperatures become, Public Works crews will adjust hours as needed if salting operations are needed overnight.

City government intends to operate as usual on Thursday. However, there will be an assessment and a public notification by City administrators by 6 a.m. Thursday if conditions change.

RoadRUNNER Transit is planning to operate with its usual hours, but transit administrators will evaluate roadways early Thursday morning. If there are changes to RoadRUNNER Transit’s schedule due to weather conditions a public notification will be issued.

Frenger Pool, 800 Parkview Drive, will be closed to the public from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Thursday. All Parks and Recreation Out of School Time Programs (Afterschool, Teen Connection, A. Fielder Memorial Safe Haven) will be closed Thursday.

A Winter Weather Advisory for Las Cruces, issued by the National Weather Service, will be in effect from 8 p.m. Wednesday to 11 a.m. Thursday. Las Cruces is expected to receive one to two inches of snow that is anticipated to start falling during the predawn hours Thursday. However, if a cold front, from the east, moves through Las Cruces sooner, the City could get two to three inches of snow.

Very cold temperatures, with low wind-chill temperatures, are expected with this storm. Weather Service meteorologists have said temperatures at or below freezing are possible for as long as 60 consecutive hours, through Saturday. Residents are urged to take precautions regarding the four Ps: People, pets, pipes, and plants.