Highway 50, Interstate 80 reopen as winter storm snarls travel in Sierra
Planning on heading to the Sierra this weekend? The National Weather Service says don’t: Travel in the mountains is expected to be hazardous for the third weekend in a row.
The storm that started Tuesday and brought with it record-breaking rain levels and hail will continue to bring light showers in the Sacramento Valley and snowfall in mountain regions, NWS Sacramento meteorologist Cory Mueller said Friday.
Both directions of Highway 50 were closed Friday afternoon at Echo Summit. The highway opened around 6:30 p.m., according to Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol, who said a snow slide hit vehicles. There were no injuries as a result of the slide, according to the CHP.
Interstate 80 was closed from Colfax to Nevada most of Friday but Caltrans reopened it at 6 p.m. Highway 89 was also closed due to snowy conditions, according to Caltrans.
The Sierra, parts of the North Coast and the Klamath Mountains above Redding were issued a winter storm warning Thursday, indicating heavy snow and hazardous conditions through Saturday afternoon, according to the NWS.
“Redding, California (at ~500 ft elevation in the far northern Sacramento Valley, where snow of any magnitude is rare) has now received more snow *in the past 12 hours* than Boston, Massachusetts has received *this entire winter,*” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. “I believe the scientific term for this statistic is ‘bonkers.’”
Mountainous areas are likely to see “moderate to heavy” snow this weekend, Mueller said, especially tonight and into Saturday. Highway passes in the Sierra are set to see roughly 3 feet of snow over the weekend, he predicted.
Snow may accumulate at elevation levels as low as 1,500 feet Sunday, Mueller said. Residents of the Sierra foothills and Shasta County foothills may see snow accumulation Saturday night and Sunday morning.
This week’s storm has brought record-breaking rain levels and even hail to the region, and has caused several roadways in the greater Sacramento area to flood.
In the last seven days, the Sacramento has seen more than 3 inches of rain, according to the National Weather Service. 0.42 of those inches fell in the city in the last 24 hours.
On Friday at around 11 a.m., hail hit some portions of Sacramento, including midtown and Land Park.
The Sacramento area is set to see “quieter weather over the weekend,” Mueller said, with the possibility of light showers, especially Saturday.
“Additional rain will be pretty light, expecting less than a quarter of an inch of rain,” Mueller said. “Heavy rain is done, thankfully, for the area.”
On Saturday, Sacramento residents can expect highs of 51 degrees and a low of 38 degrees, according to NWS. Rain is predicted to hit the area in the morning.
Sacramento residents can expect a chilly Sunday, with highs of 51 degrees and lows of 33 degrees. Clouds will be on the horizon in the morning, though no rain is expected and Sunday afternoon will bring sunny skies, according to the NWS.
This story was originally published February 15, 2019 at 5:18 PM.