Heavy Snow — Kaiser To Rodgers Ridge, California

2024-03-22 to 2024-03-24 · Kaiser To Rodgers Ridge, California

Event narrative

The Blackcap Basin SNOTEL (10300 feet) picked up an estimated 12 inches of new snowfall.

Wider weather episode

A large upper low approached the northern California coast on March 22. The associated trough with this system pushed into central California by the evening bringing widespread precipitation to the area. Much of the San Joaquin Valley picked up between a half inch and an inch of rain while much of the Sierra Nevada and adjacent foothills picked up between 0.75 inches and 1.5 inches of liquid precipitation while several higher elevations SNOTELs picked up an estimated 10 to 15 inches of new snowfall. Most of the precipitation occurred during the afternoon and evening of March 23. Moderate rainfall in the Fresno area resulted in a fatal accident on SR 99 near the intersection of Clovis Ave. This system also brought a period of gusty winds to the Mojave Desert slopes between the evening of March 23 and the morning of March 24 with several stations measuring gusts exceeding 50 mph.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1160833. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.