A pair of storms are sticking around on the West Coast this week, bringing a little rain and snow to places like Portland and Seattle and feet of snow to California’s Sierra Nevada.
“We currently do have some rain and snow moving across the Northwest,” FOX Weather meteorologist Britta Merwin said Tuesday on FOX Weather First. “You can see it stretching the I-5 corridor on radar this morning. And we are dealing with some lower snow levels.”
Significant snow totals are expected to continue in the Sierra Nevada, with around 1 to 2 inches of rain for most of the West Coast. Most of these storm impacts will be felt Tuesday as the main storm progresses.
Blizzard Warnings have been issued in the Sierra Nevada, surrounded by Winter Storm Warnings throughout California.
Up to 7 feet of new snow could fall above 3,000 feet by Thursday evening. Wind gusts of 55-75 mph are expected in the higher elevations, creating whiteout conditions. Gusts along the ridgetops near Lake Tahoe could reach 100 mph, according to the Blizzard Warning.
WHEN IS THE COLDEST TIME OF YEAR?
Even another 1 to 5 inches of snow could fall in lower elevations.
“It’s mainly going to be people who are about 1,500 feet and above,” FOX Weather meteorologist Jason Frazier said. “But I mean, it’s been doing wonders for the folks out there who own some of the resorts here.”
THESE ARE THE 7 SNOWIEST CITIES IN THE US
“We’re still tracking active snow across the Sierra,” Merwin said. “The passes have been really tough to get over. That’s going to be continuing (Tuesday), and we are seeing some scattered showers across the Bay Area.”
Seattle and Portland are seeing light snow showers on Tuesday, but Los Angeles and San Francisco are expecting rain. Some flooding will be possible.
HOW HEAVY IS IT REALLY GOING TO RAIN?