Winter weather stranded I-25 drivers

SOCORRO, N.M. (KRQE) - The problems caused by the snow continued into Tuesday as truckers and travelers tried to get back into motion.

Many were stuck overnight after Interstate 25 closed.

The interstate is open now, but during the many hours it was closed trucks that were trying to head south lined the roads in Belen and Socorro.

"I should have been in El Paso by noon yesterday," truck driver Patrick Fahey said.

Frustrated drivers like Fahey found themselves spending the night in a town most have never been to before.

Icy roads caused northbound I-25 to be shut down from Las Cruces to Socorro and southbound from Belen to Las Cruces.

"I spent the night south of Los Lunas," Fahey said.  "The road was closed earlier there."

The road was finally opened in Belen, and drivers who tried heading south were caught up in Socorro.

"It can be pretty frustrating," Fahey continued.  "My appointment was at 8 o'clock in El Paso, so now it's going to be 8 o'clock tomorrow morning."Fahey.

The extra stop added five hours to Fahey's trip.

After the morning sunshine did its work and the ice started melting, the drivers were able to cruise on through.

"It looks like it's getting a little bit better this way even though we were stopped by ice," said Dan Masten, who was driving from Michigan to Tucson.

One person was killed in a single-vehicle crash during the storm Monday on I-25 about 25 miles south of Socorro. That accident contributed to the Department of Transportation's decision to close the interstate.