RENO, Nev. (NEWSnet/AP) — The most powerful Pacific storm of the season is forecast to bring up to 10 feet of snow into the Sierra Nevada by the weekend, bringing warnings for residents to take shelter and stay off some roads.
A blizzard warning through Sunday morning covers a 300-mile stretch from north of Lake Tahoe to south of Yosemite National Park. The storm started brewing Thursday, with the biggest effects expected to close major highways and trigger power outages Friday afternoon into Saturday.
"Travel is *HIGHLY* discouraged!!" the National Weather Service's Sacramento bureau posted on social media about conditions on I-80.
"Expect substantial disruptions to daily life," the NWS Hanford bureau said in its social media announcement.
[Earlier Report: Sierra Nevada Blizzard Warning Forecast Includes 10 Feet of Snow]
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“This will be a legitimate blizzard,” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said during an online briefing Thursday. “Really true blizzard conditions with multiple feet of snow and very strong winds, the potential for power outages and the fact that roads probably aren’t going to be cleared as quickly or as effectively as they normally would be even during a significant winter storm.”
Backcountry avalanche warnings were in place around Lake Tahoe, as well as areas around Yosemite National Park stretching down to Mammoth Lakes.
The California Highway Patrol imposed travel restrictions on a long stretch of Interstate 80 between Reno and Sacramento, requiring drivers to put chains on their tires. A stretch of the highway was closed for hours at midday Thursday while crews cleared the wreckage of a semi-trailer truck that overturned near Truckee, California.
Meteorologists predict as much as 10 feet of snow is possible in the mountains around Lake Tahoe by the weekend, with 3 to 6 in the communities on the lake’s shores and more than a foot possible in the valleys on the Sierra’s eastern front, including Reno.
Winds are expected to gust in excess of 115 mph over Sierra ridgetops, and 70 mph at lower elevations.
Alpine Meadows, an affiliate of neighboring Palisades Tahoe, will be closed Friday. Palisades planned to open only its lowest elevation runs, and could end up closing those.
On the bright side, California water officials said the storm should provide a much-needed boost to the Sierra snowpack, which is vital to the state’s water supplies and sits well below normal so far this season.
The Sierra Nevada snowpack stood at 80% of average to date but only 70% of the typical April 1 peak, California Department of Water resources officials said Thursday.
“The results today show just how critical this upcoming month is going to be in terms of our water supply outlook for the upcoming year,” hydrometeorologist Angelique Fabbiani-Leon said during a briefing at Phillips Station, a snowpack-measuring location south of Lake Tahoe.
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