Blizzard — West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada, California

2024-02-29 · West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada, California

Event narrative

Caltrans reported 4 to 16 inches over 24-hours starting February 29th through the morning of March 1st. Ski resorts in the Sierra reported snow amounts of 10 to 20 inches over the same timeframe. UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab reported 19.1 inches. On February 29th, wind gusts of 45 to 65 mph were observed in the mountains.

Wider weather episode

The coldest and snowiest storm of the season arrived at the end of February and continued into early March, bringing substantial disruptions to daily life. Widespread power outages and extended road closures were observed in the mountains and foothills from extremely heavy snow and strong, gusty southerly winds from February 29th through early March. Moderate to locally heavy rain was observed in the Valley.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1164539. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.