DENVER - The state's snowpack has surpassed the 30-year average, water storage levels are up, and officials say this could mean the state's five-year drought is ebbing.

As of Saturday morning, the state's snowpack was 103 percent of the 30-year average, and more snow was forecast across Colorado this weekend.

As snow fell late Saturday, at least two highways across the state were closed by accidents, including an eight car pile up on the icy ramp from eastbound Interstate 70 to northbound Interstate 25, according to Denver police.

The State Patrol was investigating a double-fatal accident that happened on snowy Colorado 66 south of Loveland, though patrol spokesman Master Trooper Ron Watkins did not immediately know if it was weather related.

The Colorado Department of Transportation closed Colorado 65 across the Grand Mesa east of Grand Junction because of poor driving conditions. Up to 2 feet of snow was expected on parts of the Western Slope by Sunday.

Meanwhile, stored water supplies were 78 percent of average, up from about 71 percent last year, according to the Colorado Division of Water Resources. Southwestern areas, which had been hardest hit by the drought, now lead the state in snowpack depths.

The snowpack percentage is measured against a 30-year average. Melting snow contributes about 80 percent of the water in rivers, streams, lakes and reservoirs, which comprise much of the state's water supply. Eight major Colorado river systems also provide water to 10 western states.

Autumn snows and a cool, wet summer have combined to put the state in a better position.

The Climate Diagnostic Center's latest forecast indicates there is a good chance that Colorado may see a wet spring if a weak El Nino weather system continues to strengthen.

Most of Colorado is still classified as being in a drought by the National Drought Monitor, but the degree has lessened during the past 12 months.

"It's a big improvement over where we were," said Nolan Doesken, assistant state climatologist..

"It's still too early to say," said Jack Byers, deputy state engineer at the Colorado Division of Natural Resources. "This recovery is slow. ... I'm not even sure we could call it steady."

Klaus Wolter, a climate researcher at the Climate Diagnostic Center, said the winter could provide significant new snows in February, March and April. "The spring season will be critical for the north-central mountains," Wolter said. "If the El Nino strengthens too much, it could force the storms farther south," missing watersheds crucial to the Front Range. "But there are some hints that it will continue into the spring," he said.