Sierra’s Worst Snowstorm In Years
A major winter storm is hammering the Sierra Nevada, delivering the most severe snowfall in years.
Snow stakes across the Tahoe basin are completely buried as the storm unloads at full force. Forecast totals of 3 to 8 feet are expected by Thursday evening, placing this system well above anything seen so far this winter.
Conditions at Donner Summit have deteriorated into a full blizzard. Visibility has collapsed to near zero. Vehicles are buried. Semi-trucks are stranded. Travel is impossible. Interstate 80 is fully closed through the pass as snow continues to pile up by the foot.
“These are the worst blizzard conditions I have ever seen in my life at Donner Summit,” storm chaser Colin McCarthy reported.
The extreme snowfall has already triggered avalanches. An incident reported just north of Donner Summit near Castle Peak caught 16 people. As of writing (early Wed), six have been confirmed as survivors, but ten are still missing.
This is a high-impact, dangerous winter storm in every sense: feet of accumulation, whiteout conditions, major transport shutdowns, and avalanches across the central Sierra.
Alps Hit By Record Snow
The Alps continue to be buried.
After last week’s exceptional snows, another major surge is hammering the range, pushing accumulations into historic territory and driving avalanche danger to extreme levels across large parts of France, Italy, and Switzerland.
Resorts are reporting relentless blizzards, buried infrastructure, and rapidly destabilizing snowpacks.
