Heavy Snow — Mountains Southwestern Shasta County To Western Colusa County, California

2025-12-24 to 2025-12-26 · Mountains Southwestern Shasta County To Western Colusa County, California

Event narrative

Nearby CoCoRaHS at similar elevations measured 4 to 8 inches of heavy snow. The National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center estimated 2 to 10 inches of heavy snow above 3500 feet, with 1 to 3 feet at the higher peaks.

Wider weather episode

A prolonged period of wet weather brought heavy snowfall and strong winds to the Sierra Nevada. Heaviest snowfall was observed from 12/24-12/26 when snow levels came down below the mountain passes. Snowfall measurements over the 12/24-12/26 timeframe were around 2-5 ft per Caltrans, Ski resorts, and UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab. Southerly wind gusts of 50-80 mph were observed as well across the Valley, foothills and mountains that resulted in numerous downed trees and thousands of power outages. There were also numerous reports of flooding in the lower elevations from heavy rain, including two fatalities and 3 injuries from vehicles that hydroplaned and crashed.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1307929. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.