Thousands without power in Truckee, key highways closed amid snow in Sierra Nevada
Read the latest update >> Long stretches of I-80 and Highway 50 closed as snow storm pounds California
Thousands of residents in Truckee and other areas on the north side of Lake Tahoe are without power Sunday morning due to a winter storm that has dumped snow over the Sierra Nevada, closing down major highways and ski resorts.
Just before 9 a.m., more than 14,000 customers of Liberty Utilities lacked power in the area. But as crews continued working through the storm, just 2,687 customers were still without power as of 10 a.m. By 1:30 p.m., 2,626 customers were still affected by the outage.
Outages in and around Truckee due to the severe winter storm began Friday. Liberty Utilities provides electricity to about 49,000 living in the Tahoe Basin.
As snow pours in over the Sierra Nevada, several ski resorts near Lake Tahoe have shut down due to fast-moving winds and safety concerns over heavy snow. Lifts at Alpine Meadows, Palisades Tahoe, Heavenly, Mt. Rose, Kirkwood and Sugar Bowl were closed as of Sunday. Northstar California announced it was closed Sunday afternoon and would open late on Monday.
Interstate 80 was shut down Saturday morning in both directions from Colfax to the Nevada state line. Portions of Highway 50, the other major roadway from Sacramento into the Sierra Nevada, were closed Saturday evening due to multiple spinouts amid the stormy weather.
As of Sunday afternoon, Highway 50 was closed in both directions from just east of Placerville to Meyers.
Caltrans officials said Sunday morning that the closure along I-80 will remain in place throughout the day, and although the situation will be reassessed Monday, there is no estimated time of reopening.
Northern California storm
A winter storm warning in the Sierra Nevada issued by the National Weather Service’s Sacramento office took effect Saturday night and will remain in place through Tuesday morning.
Meteorologists are predicting from 3 to 5 feet of snow in the Sierra, with high elevations potentially seeing 8 feet. Foothill communities above 1,000 feet of elevation could see 4 to 15 inches.
Weather service officials said that travel over the mountains will be hazardous while the winter storm warning is active, especially through the weekend, with zero visibility on roadways likely at times.
By Wednesday, Donner Pass along I-80 could see as much as 4 feet of snow, while Echo Summit along Highway 50 could see 3 feet. Lassen Peak could see a full 5 feet of snow, according to weather service forecasts.
Meteorologists predict severe travel disruptions Sunday and Monday, with lighter snowfall and rain showers starting Tuesday.
Communities in the Sacramento Valley will continue to see rain through Wednesday. Sacramento and Stockton are both expected to receive between .5 inches and an inch of rain in that time frame, while Grass Valley could see between 3 and 4 inches.
Valley rain eased Sunday, but meteorologists said showers will soon return.
“The period of drier weather will be short-lived as our next short wave will dig down the coast later Sunday into Monday,” forecasters wrote in a Sunday forecast discussion.
The Valley also will be issued a hard freeze watch starting Tuesday and lasting through Thursday due to predicted sub-freezing temperatures.
This story was originally published December 26, 2021 at 10:59 AM with the headline "Thousands without power in Truckee, key highways closed amid snow in Sierra Nevada."
