SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — Feet of snow, 190 mph wind gusts, drivers stuck behind closed freeways, national parks and ski resorts shuttered, and even a tornado have already pummeled California during a days-long blizzard underway in the Sierra Nevada.
And that was just on Friday.
The massive storm continues its assault on the region Saturday, fueled by a wide-reaching area of low pressure spanning much of the West Coast, and feeding a constant stream of snow that is expected to reach over 10-12 feet in the higher elevations and 2-5 feet as low as 6,000 feet where many residents live.
Several highways and mountain passes have been closed due to the storm, including the busy Interstate 80 that links San Francisco to Lake Tahoe and Reno via the Sierra Nevada. CalTrans crews shut down a 50-mile stretch of the roadway Friday evening from Drum Forbay to the California-Nevada state line after multiple spinouts were reported amid blizzard conditions.
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There was no estimate yet when the freeway would reopen, but chains have been required for all vehicles when open.
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Blizzard Warnings continue for the Sierra Nevada, including the popular Lake Tahoe area, all the way into Sunday morning. A potentially deadly combination of extreme snowfall rates of 2-4 inches per hour and wind gusts of 70 mph in lower elevations to over 115 mph in higher elevations will continue whiteout conditions and rapidly accumulating and drifting snowfall.
Lake Tahoe’s Palisades Ski Resort at 8,700 feet has recorded multiple wind gusts over 150 mph since Friday, including one measurement of a gust clocked at 190 mph Friday night, while a gust measured 84 mph closer to town.
Even more dangerous, forecasters now warn of a chance of thunderstorms that could bring incredible snowfall rates of 4-6 inches per hour.
“Storms of this magnitude are rare and capable of closing major roads and damaging power infrastructure for extended periods of time,” the NWS warned. “Make sure you have food, water, and a secondary heat source for more than several days in your home in case of extended power outages.”
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Yosemite National Park was shut down Thursday night ahead of the storm, which was forecast to bring several feet of snow to the park. The park will remain closed through at least noon Sunday, and possibly longer, National Park Service officials said.
Elsewhere, Winter Storm Warnings are posted for the combination of snow and gusty winds across other parts of Northern California and western Nevada, including Reno, which itself is expecting up to a foot of snow.
Carson City averages about 14 inches of snow a year and could get that in just this storm alone.
But the bad weather wasn’t confined to the Sierra Nevada. A tornado touched down in the San Joaquin Valley Friday evening, triggering a rare Tornado Warning for the region.
Despite the alerts, residents from all over the San Joaquin Valley took photos and videos of the funnel and the subsequent tornado as it worked northbound through properties that were used for both residential and agricultural purposes.
Local authorities did not report any injuries associated with the event, and it was thought the twister was only briefly on the ground. An NWS storm survey team will head to the area Saturday to assess the twister’s strength and any impacts.
In San Francisco, where wind gusts reached as high as 54 mph, four people were injured when a massive tree branch came crashing down on a car, according to city’s fire department. All four were taken to a local hospital for treatment, but the extent of their injuries wasn’t given.
More showers and thunderstorms will pepper the San Francisco Bay Area through Saturday with intense bursts of rain, gusts of wind and even small hail.
A massive area of low pressure swirling in the northern Pacific Ocean is the culprit for the intense snow, not only flooding the West Coast with cool air, but a steady stream of moisture.
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“It’s really a perfect setup here,” says FOX Weather Winter Storm Specialist Tom Niziol. “Precipitation is coming off the largest ocean in the world. It’s an inexhaustible supply of moisture. And it is hitting the Sierra range broadside/perpendicular. That gives it the most amount of lift going over those mountains… It’s kind of like the perfect storm.”
And because the winds are so strong, rather than just hitting the windward or western side of the mountains, the snow is being carried across the entire mountain range.
“So we’re going to see heavy snowfall amounts even into a good part of Nevada. All this precipitation moves eastward going across the Wasatch and the Rockies as well.”
While the strong winds and heavy snow should begin to taper off later Sunday, snow remains in the forecast for the region well into next week as the broad area of low pressure continues to send a stream of moisture and winds into the Sierra Nevada.
Drier weather promises to return later in the week, though the extended forecast hints and a return of storm activity the following week.
“We are hoping you are ready to be in this for the duration, because you will be either way,” NWS Reno forecasters said.