'It's intense': Wind gusts hit 150 mph as massive winter storm batters Tahoe
Andrew Chamings, SFGATE
Dec. 27, 2022
Palisades Tahoe was hit with high winds and blinding snowfall at higher elevations overnight.
Palisades Tahoe was hit with high winds and blinding snowfall at higher elevations overnight.
Courtesy Palisades Tahoe
Bay Area residents heading to the Tahoe region to hit the slopes Tuesday have been advised to reconsider travel plans as a heavy winter storm batters the Sierra.
The urgent winter weather message posted early Tuesday by the National Weather Service's Reno office said the storm had already arrived. The agency moved the winter storm warning forward after intense winds and heavy snow hit Donner Summit in the early morning hours. The warning is now in place from 7 a.m. Tuesday to 10 a.m. Wednesday.
The NWS says 3 to 10 inches may fall in the Greater Lake Tahoe Area on Tuesday, including the cities of South Lake Tahoe, Truckee, Stateline and Incline Village. The agency told SFGATE that 11 inches had already fallen on Mount Rose, near Reno, by 9 a.m. Tuesday.
Here we go! A winter storm will impact the region tonight through Wednesday afternoon. Take a look here for more details: 🌬️❄️
Wind Impacts: https://t.co/YxnA34ZGi2
Winter Impacts: https://t.co/xySb6hQTUq pic.twitter.com/MRU2vbi2IB
— NWS Reno (@NWSReno) December 26, 2022
"Travel could be very difficult," the NWS said in the warning. "Impacts along the passes are expected with ongoing snowfall occurring on Donner
Summit [Tuesday] morning. Strong winds could cause extensive tree damage. Small vessels may capsize."
After a break on Wednesday evening, a second storm system is expected to move through the region on Thursday afternoon and into the weekend.
"The winds were ripping this morning," meteorologist Justin Collins with weather service's Reno office told SFGATE over the phone.
Collins reported that gusts were hitting around 120 mph on the peaks around Tahoe Basin, maxing out at a fearsome 150 mph at Tahoe Palisades near Highway 89. "It's intense," Collins said, adding that he expects conditions to taper off by tomorrow afternoon.
The Palisades Tahoe resort closed many of its ski lifts on the upper mountain on Tuesday morning, and shared a video of winds battering a peak that looks over Olympic Valley.
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