Heavy California Snowfalls Creating Dangerous Travel Conditions in Sierras

A mountain peak is covered with heavy snow near the Phillips Station meadow where the California Department of Water Resources conducted its first snow survey of the season in the Sierra Nevada mountains on Jan. 3, 2023. (Jonathan Wong/California Department of Water Resources)

Rain and snowfall in California over the weekend have led to evacuations and dangerous travel conditions in a number of places across the state, including the Sierra mountains.

The excessive snowfall caused treacherous conditions for drivers, according to numerous reports; meanwhile, the University of California–Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab stated that it received 21.5 inches of snow in 24 hours.

Just before the start of the holiday weekend that brought more snowfall, the California Highway Patrol rescued three people who ended up perched in their car on the edge of a cliff in the Santa Cruz Mountains after the vehicle slid off a rain-slicked road.

The car’s occupants “were scared for their lives and in disbelief” when they were pulled safely from the vehicle as the front end hung precariously over the cliff’s edge, according to the highway patrol.

The expected additional snowfall of one to three feet through Jan. 17 will cause hazardous conditions to continue, the National Weather Service’s Bianca Feldkircher told The Epoch Times.

“Another round of snow is expected for the Sierra, which will lead to additional hazardous travel impacts,“ Feldkircher said. ”However, a break is expected on Jan. 17 before another system moves into the area on Jan. 18. Then drier conditions are expected on Jan. 19 that will likely last through the weekend.”

Conditions Expected to Improve

Conditions could soon moderate enough to facilitate normal travel.

“Confidence continues to increase that much drier conditions will settle over California by the end of the week and through at least the weekend,“ Fedlkircher said. ”However, since an abundance of snow has fallen over the Sierra these past few weeks, it’s going to be important to check and listen to any advice given by transportation officials.”

Multiple roads and highways were shut down around the Sierra region, including several around South Lake Tahoe on the Nevada–California border, the Weather Channel reported.

WeatherNation shared video footage on Twitter of SUVs being used to pull vehicles out of snow drifts while Bobcat tractors were helping to clear snow off the roads, as well as assisting with snow-blowing and snow-plowing.

ABC News Meteorologist Ginger Zee reported on social media that this winter is the “snowiest start to the season in 40 years for the Sierra.”

“Even if snow stopped now, we would already be at average,“ Zee said. ”And there is another 60–80 [inches] in the next 7 days. ... This will help fill reservoirs in Northern California.”

Currently, the snowpack is estimated at about 10 feet and may be likely to grow several more feet.

A backcountry avalanche warning has been issued for the central Sierra, including the Lake Tahoe area.

Vehicles travel along a snow-lined U.S. Route 50 the morning after a winter storm pelted the region with a large amount of snow, in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., on Jan. 1, 2023. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

The Pacific Crest Trail Snow Report also reported extremely high levels of snow, stating that the Sierra trail snow is 329 percent of its average for this time of year and that another foot or more could be added before a dry spell moves into the area.

The Sierra isn’t the only area experiencing unexpected snow levels.

According to the National Weather Service, a winter storm dumped nearly 20 inches of snow in northern Arizona on Jan. 15, with the Flagstaff area receiving 12 to 18 inches.

With more snow expected, Northern Arizona University (NAU) announced that all classes on the Flagstaff Mountain Campus would be canceled on Jan. 17 because of the storm. However, school officials have said that classes held at other NAU locations, including online, will continue at their regular times and locations.

State Route 64 in the Grand Canyon area and northbound State Route 89 near Sedona through Kachina Village were both closed on Jan. 15, according to Arizona Department of Transportation officials.

Severe Weather in California

Elsewhere in California, conditions aren’t better with the coastal areas seeing torrential downpours that have caused flooding and mudslides and left trees blocking roads.

At least 19 people are dead and more rain and snow fell in storm-ravaged California over the weekend, making travel hazardous and prompting evacuation warnings because of flooding concerns along a swollen river near Sacramento, as The Epoch Times previously reported.

The National Weather Service reported on Jan. 14 that bands of gusty thunderstorms began in the north and spread southward, with another so-called atmospheric river storm following close behind on Jan. 15.

A man wades through a flooded street in the Rio del Mar neighborhood of Aptos, Calif., on Jan. 9, 2023. (Nic Coury/AP Photo)

On Jan. 14, President Joe Biden signed a major disaster declaration for California to aid state and local recovery efforts following the major storms.

“The president’s action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in the counties of Merced, Sacramento, and Santa Cruz,” the White House said in a statement.

“Federal funding also is available to state, tribal, and eligible local governments, and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work in the counties of Merced, Sacramento, and Santa Cruz.”

Storms have been pounding California since late December 2022 as part of what the National Weather Service refers to as an “atmospheric river.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.