Heavy Snow — West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada, California

2024-05-04 to 2024-05-05 · West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada, California

Event narrative

CoCoRaHS observers reported heavy snow at locations, such as, Truckee posted 15.5 inches, 10.0 inches at Tahoma, and 6.3 at Arnold 0.6 ENE. The National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center estimates 4 to 18 inches fell over the Sierra from May 4th to 5th. CalTrans reported 22 inches at Soda Springs, 18 inches at Yuba Pass, and 16 inches at Kingvale. Palisades Ski Resort reported 26 inches at the summit and 8 inches at the base.

Wider weather episode

A late season storm brings heavy snow to the Sierra with widespread rain and scattered thunderstorms in the Valley. Periods of heavy snow saw major roadways such as I-80, SR-20, and US-50 close with chain controls also observed. There was a lightning strike fire which destroyed a mobile home in Newcastle.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1166414. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.