YOUR AD HERE »

Update: Power restored to most Liberty Utilities customers on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore

Ryan Hoffman rhoffman@citizentelegram.com
Flooding near the Truckee River and streams in the Tahoe Basin is likely to continue Monday morning.
Ryan Hoffman / Tahoe Daily Tribune

UPDATE 6:15 p.m.

Power has been restored to nearly all Liberty Utilities customers on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore, the company announced shortly after 6 p.m. Monday.

The fix required rebuilding a major transmission line. Liberty will continue to monitor the line as snowfall is expected to increase. The company also is working on restoring power to those customers still without electricity.

Approximately 50 customers along Highway 89 between Squaw Valley and Truckee are still without power along with a few other scattered residences, according to Liberty.

There also are about 20 to 40 Tahoe City customers whose power should be restored, baring any further problems with this circuit, as soon as Liberty is able to have the distribution switched.

UPDATE 6 p.m.

By  Associated Press

U.S. Interstate 80 has reopened over the top of the Sierra Nevada after a mudslide shut it down for nearly 20 hours from west of Truckee, California, to the Nevada line.

Most of Reno’s downtown bridges reopened Monday after Truckee River flooding subsided. But a number of flood-damaged roads remained closed, including a stretch of State Route 446 near Pyramid Lake north of Reno where a washout left behind a 50-foot-deep crevasse in the road.

Emergency crews in Reno and Sparks are trying to clear flood debris to make way for snowplows the next two days as another major winter storm moves into the Sierra.

Flooding shouldn’t be a problem, but the National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning in effect until 4 a.m. Thursday for the Lake Tahoe area where a backcountry avalanche warning also is in effect.

The service says anywhere from 2 to 5 feet of snow could fall at lake level. Four to 8 feet is possible at area ski resorts.

UPDATE: 

The westbound I-80 slide has been cleared as of 11 a.m., according to Caltrans, and traffic from Stateline is expected to be allowed through starting at 11:30 a.m.

At the same time, the National Weather Service in Reno said “we’re not out of the woods yet.” The agency is predicting 2 to 4 feet of snow in the Basin. Expect periods of heavy snow, strong winds and possible blizzard conditions on Tuesday and Wednesday.


A flood warning in the greater Tahoe Basin was extended to 7:15 a.m. for California and Nevada counties of El Dorado, Placer, Nevada, Alpine, Douglas and Southern Washoe.

At the same time, a winter storm warning is in effect until 4 a.m. Thursday.

As of 5 a.m., widespread flooding continued along small streams in the Tahoe Basin and along the Truckee River above and through Truckee, according to the National Weather Service.

Although snow has started to replace rain in South Lake Tahoe and higher elevations, flooding along with low lying areas is expected to continue through daybreak.

“Rainfall rates have slowed across the area and snow levels are nearing lake level. The lowering snow levels are allowing some of the higher elevation streams to begin receding,” the flood advisory states. “This will limit additional run off, but will not end the flooding.”

The Upper Truckee River in South Lake Tahoe will likely remain out of its banks into Monday evening. The Truckee River in Truckee will recede and fall below flood stage later Monday morning.

On Sunday, flooding in South Lake Tahoe led the city to open an emergency evacuation center at South Tahoe High School, although no emergency evacuation orders were ordered.

South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue responded to a report of weather in a home in Rockwood Court Sunday evening, while standing water closed streets including Bill Avenue in eastern South Lake Tahoe and Lake Tahoe Boulevard at Sawmill Road in the west end of the city.

The Lake Tahoe Unified School District and Lake Tahoe Community College announced Sunday night that they would be closed Monday and continue to evaluate conditions through the day.

The weather also closed ski resorts Sunday and Monday. Sierra-at-Tahoe was the first to announce it would remain closed Monday due to high winds and avalanche danger.

Heavenly Mountain Resort announced it would be closed Monday morning.

Kirkwood Mountain Resort is open Monday, but with limited terrain. Chains are required, and officials at the ski resort said to be prepared for “challenging weather conditions.”



Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond make the Tahoe Tribune's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.