A severe snowstorm in the Sierra Nevada Mountains is expected to weaken on Sunday, but more heavy snow is coming.
The National Weather Service said conditions will improve on Sunday as winds weaken, but precipitation will return quickly, with some areas experiencing heavy snow and others experiencing rain.
A multi-day storm that one meteorologist called “the worst yet” has shut down a key east-west highway in northern California, shuttered ski resorts and left thousands of homes and businesses without power.
As of Sunday morning, Pacific Gas & Electric had restored power to all but about 7,000 California customers, while NV Energy had reduced that to about 1,000 homes and businesses. Some ski areas are planning to reopen, albeit with delayed start times and limited operations.
“We are not out of the woods yet,” officials at Sierra Resort in the Tahoe Mountains said in a post on the resort’s website.
National Weather Service meteorologist William Churchill said Saturday that more than 10 feet (3 meters) of snow is expected to fall at high altitudes, causing “life-threatening concerns” for residents near Lake Tahoe and hampering Access to the main east-west highway.
A second, weaker storm is expected to bring 1 to 2 feet of additional snow to the area Monday through Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service office in Sacramento.
Thomas Petkanas, a bartender at Alibi Ale Works in Incline Village, Nevada, near Lake Tahoe, said about 3 feet (1 meter) of snow had fallen by noon Saturday. Customers shook off the snow when they arrived at the brewpub and restaurant, he said.
Earlier, the weather service warned that heavy snow was creating “extremely dangerous or even impossible” driving conditions, with wind gusts in the mountains exceeding 100 mph (160 kph).
The weather service said avalanche danger was “high to extreme” in the backcountry throughout the central Sierra and greater Lake Tahoe areas as of Sunday evening.
California authorities on Friday closed 100 miles (160 kilometers) of Interstate 80, the main route between Reno and Sacramento, due to “spin, high winds and low visibility.” It’s unclear when the highway will reopen from the California-Nevada border west of Reno to near California’s Emigrant Gap.
Travel east of the Sierra Nevada is dangerous, with Caltrans also citing “multiple spins and collisions” and “whiteout conditions” as it closes the road from near Bishop in the Owens Valley to just north of Mono Lake. 90 miles (145 km) of US Route 395 in Ridgeport.
Pacific Gas and Electric Co. reported that about 7,468 California homes and businesses were without power as of 5:56 p.m. NV Energy reported that about 1,500 customers were without power in parts of northern Nevada, including Incline Village and Reno.
In southern Nevada, the weather service issued a wind gust warning on Saturday, with winds reaching 70 mph (145 kph). NV Energy reported that nearly 29,000 customers were without power in and around Las Vegas on Saturday, but that number had dropped to about 16,000 by the evening.
Storms began moving through the area Thursday. Blizzard warnings covered 300 miles (480 kilometers) of mountains on Sunday morning.
Some skiers rushed to the mountain ahead of the storm.
Meteorologists predict that by the weekend, snowfall amounts of up to 10 feet (3 meters) could fall in the mountains around Lake Tahoe, with snowfall amounts of 3 to 6 feet (0.9 to 1.8 meters) and even more than 1 foot (0.9 to 1.8 meters) in lakeshore communities. 30 cm) may occur in valleys along the eastern edge of the range, including Reno.
Yosemite National Park is closed Friday. Officials said the center will be closed until at least noon Sunday.
