Severe storms close interstates and dump snow on mountains in California and Nevada

RENO, Nev. (AP) – The biggest storm of the season has closed long stretches of Interstate 80 in California, bringing strong winds and heavy rain to low-lying areas and raging in the Sierra Nevada overnight into Saturday. A blizzard raged. Thousands of customers are without power.

Up to 3 meters (10 feet) of snow is expected in some areas. The National Weather Service in Reno announced late Friday that it expected the heaviest snow to fall after midnight, and that blizzard conditions could continue through Saturday, reducing visibility to less than a quarter of a mile.

The National Weather Service said “high to extreme avalanche danger” is expected in the central Sierra backcountry, including areas around Lake Tahoe, into Sunday evening.

California officials closed 100 miles (160 kilometers) of Interstate 80 on Friday due to “spinouts, high winds and poor visibility.” They had no idea when the highway would reopen from the California-Nevada border just west of Reno to near Emigrant Gap, California.

Pacific Gas & Electric reported around 10 p.m. Friday that 24,000 homes and businesses were without power.

Andy Bollenbacher, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Hanford, said a tornado touched down in Madera County Friday afternoon, causing some damage to an elementary school.

Some ski resorts that closed Friday said they planned to remain closed Saturday to prepare for reopening Sunday, but most said they would wait until Saturday morning for an update. .

Palisades Tahoe, the largest resort north of Tahoe and host of the 1960 Winter Olympics, hopes to reopen some of its lowest-elevation Palisades slopes on Saturday, but adjacent Alpine Meadows will have all chairs closed for the second day. It was announced that the lift would be closed. The forecast called for “heavy snow and winds of over 160.9 km/h.”

“We have essential personnel on the hill throughout the day performing administrative work, maintaining access roads, and excavating chairlifts, but based on the current situation, if we were to be able to reopen, Even then, there will be significant delays,” Palisades Tahoe said. Friday on X, formerly known as Twitter.

storm began shelling the area on Thursday. A blizzard warning is in effect until Sunday morning, covering a 300-mile (482-kilometer) stretch of the mountains.

Some ski enthusiasts rushed to climb the mountain before the storm.

Daniel Lavery, an avid skier who works at a home and building supplies store in the Reno area, wasn't one of them. He said Friday that he didn't consider driving an hour to ski at a resort in Tahoe with a season pass because of the high winds.

But most customers on Friday seemed to think the storm wasn't as bad as expected, he said.

“Someone asked me for a shovel,” Lovely said. “No one asked me about snow blowers. They were sold out during the storm about two weeks ago.”

Meteorologists say up to 10 feet (3 meters) of snow could accumulate in the mountains around Lake Tahoe by the weekend, with lakeside communities seeing 3 to 6 feet (0.9 to 1.8 meters) and 1 foot (30 meters) of snow. It is predicted that there is a possibility that it will exceed 200 meters. Possible in valleys on the eastern front of the Sierra, including Reno.

Yosemite National Park was closed Friday, and officials said it would remain closed until at least noon Sunday.

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Associated Press writer Janie Herr in San Francisco contributed to this report.