Heavy Snow in West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada, California

Heavy mountain snow brought major travel impacts to the Sierra Nevada from April 10th through 12th. UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab measured 42.6 inches over this period. Kirkwood Ski Resort measured 41 inches. The National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center estimated 2 to over 4 feet of snow above 5000 feet, with 3 to 6 inches down to around 4000 feet from April 10th through 12th. There were extended periods of chain controls along the mountain highways due to heavy snow. Over 100 vehicles were stuck on Highway 88 in Amador County at one point due to the winter storm. Interstate 80 had periods of closures and holding of traffic due to heavy snow and spinouts.

A spring storm brought rain, mountain snow and thunderstorms to interior northern California in early to mid April. Gusty winds with a line of thunderstorms on April 11th between 5:00 PM and 9:00 PM led to numerous reports of tree damage and power outages in the Greater Sacramento Area and into the adjacent Sierra foothills, with measured wind gusts of 35 to 40 mph observed. There were also numerous reports of roadway flooding. A touchdown of an EF-U tornado occurred from 2:05 PM to 2:06 PM on April 12th near Vina, CA. There were also reports of severe hail in thunderstorms. Heavy mountain snow brought major travel impacts to the Sierra Nevada from April 10th through 12th. UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab measured 42.6 inches of heavy snow. Kirkwood Ski Resort measured 41 inches of heavy snow. Wind gusts in the Sierra were measured generally between 45 and 55 mph.