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Snow returns to Lake Tahoe, active weather to continue this week

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — There won’t be much thawing out on Tuesday from a cold storm that dumped about a foot of snow at Lake Tahoe throughout the day on Monday and more snow is expected later in the week.

The morning temperatures dipped into single digits Tuesday and the expected high will be in the mid to high 30s. The temps are much more typical of January with daytime highs 15 to 25 degrees below seasonal averages.

Winds also gusted near Alpine Meadows with a gust hitting 157 mph, according to the National Weather Service in Reno. An 88 mph gust was recorded near Mt. Rose Summit and to the south Kirkwood Mountain Resort was forced to close due to heavy winds.



There were also many spin-outs and collisions on snowy Tahoe roads.

Nevada Highway Patrol reported a non-injury three-car crash near Mt. Rose Summit and later in the day California Highway Patrol reported a head-on collision west of Pioneer Trail in Meyers.



The crash in Meyers caused traffic to back up to the agricultural inspection station on US-50 and caused chain control to be held for a short period, CHP said.

A head-on collision happened Monday west of Pioneer Trail in Meyers.
Provided/CHP

A collision on Nevada State Route 28 north of Spooner Junction resulted in Tahoe-Douglas firefighters transporting five people to Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center. The highway was essentially closed, the Record Courier reported.

Palisades Tahoe received 9 inches of snow and Heavenly and Kirkwood mountain resorts each received 7 inches.

Chains are still required Tuesday morning along the West Shore on Highway 89 and south over Luther Pass. They are also required over Daggett Summit on Kingsbury Grade, and over Mount Rose Summit, according to NVRoads.com.

The purple lines show chain requirements at Lake Tahoe.
Provided/NVRoads.com

The forecast shows an active weather for much of the week and into Easter weekend.

Wednesday will be frigid again but the day will be mostly sunny with a high in the low 40s before another storm moves into the region in the evening.

The service said “snow showers will develop across the Sierra later Wednesday night and Thursday morning. With the overnight passage of this system into the region, there is moderate confidence that snow accumulations will produce snow covered roads and bring mountain travel impacts for the Thursday morning commute over regions passes.”

The service says simulations are showing 4-8 inches of snow from Lassen southward through the basin and Carson Pass.

Winds again will be strong, but less than Monday’s storm. Lake Tahoe is expected to have gusts up to 25 mph.

For Easter weekend, the service said simulations are split on the weather pattern.

“A growing number of simulations are showing a warmer weather system reaching the Sierra by Saturday with rain/snow lines above 6,000 feet,” the service said. “Though there are simulations that build a ridge over the western US, current guidance favors any snow impacts to the Sierra above 6,000 feet. So there’s still a chance for a warm/dry Easter weekend, but with at least a southwest flow into the west coast and breezy winds that could impact those planned outdoor weekend plans.”

Peak wind speeds during a 24-hour period.
Provided/NWS

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