Storm to bring rain and snow amid holiday travel

Hefty snow and a drenching rain are forecast, respectively, for the Sierra and Central San Joaquin Valley on Friday and into Christmas Eve as a storm arrives in the region.

The National Weather Service office in Hanford says rain could begin falling early Friday, and then pick up after 10 a.m. and be heavy at times. Rain continues into Saturday, when it turns to showers before ending Saturday night.

“Before the onset of rain, southeast winds will become rather gusty in the north Valley on Friday, especially in Merced County,” according to a forecast statement from the weather service. The system is expected to bring a “drenching rain” in the lower elevations of the Sierra’s western slope, particularly Friday evening into Saturday morning, it said.

In the Sierra, a winter storm warning was issued from Yosemite National Park to the Tulare County mountains. Up to 2 feet of snow was forecast to fall above 6,000 feet. Eight to 16 inches were to fall above 4,000 feet, with several inches at 4,000 feet.

The snow comes when many people will be traveling for Christmas.

“The heavy snow will make many roads impassable and may produce widespread power outages due to the weight of snow on tree limbs and power lines,” the weather service noted. “Strong winds will lead to blowing snow, reduced visibility and additional power outages.”

At the south end of the Valley, travelers were advised to expect accumulating snow in the Kern County mountain passes on Saturday, which could produce long delays and very slick road conditions. A winter weather advisory posted for the Tejon, Tehachapi and Walker passes said chain controls were possible.

This story was originally published December 22, 2016 at 3:09 PM with the headline "Storm to bring rain and snow amid holiday travel."