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A powerful storm brought traffic to a crawl in the Sierra Sunday and was expected to leave snow down to 1,000 feet in Nevada County this morning.
The National Weather Service in Sacramento said snow showers could linger through today into tonight before turning into rain Tuesday. The storm is expected to move out of Nevada County by Tuesday night.
Thanksgiving weekend travelers seeking a break in the storm found tire chains were mandatory Sunday on Interstate 80 over Donner Summit.
Greg Schiessl, a California Highway Patrol dispatcher in Truckee, said motorists faced major delays after I-80's westbound lanes over Donner Summit were shut down for an hour late Sunday morning by two noninjury accidents.
"It backed up (westbound) traffic at Truckee for five miles," he said. "It's super slow going because of all the holiday traffic."
The Boreal ski resort atop Donner Summit reported 5 inches of new snow by late Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service was calling for the storm to drop up to 18 inches of snow on higher elevations around Lake Tahoe by today.
The CHP Web site logged 14 accidents or spinouts and numerous hazards along I-80 from Truckee to Auburn Sunday from 12:30 to 5 p.m. alone, most of them noninjury. According to a CHP spokesperson at the office in Newcastle, none of the wrecks were fatal.
Only one had occurred on Nevada County highways, when a vehicle went into a ditch on Highway 20 near I-80 at 2:45 p.m. No one was hurt in that mishap, either.
Meanwhile, the new snowfall made ski resort personnel happy.
"It's snowing hard, and we're loving it," Boreal spokesman Jon Slaughter said. "There's a buzz in the air that winter is finally here."
Two of Boreal's seven lifts were in operation Sunday, and the resort hoped to open at least two more lifts after the storm, Slaughter said.
Two other Lake Tahoe resorts, Heavenly and Kirkwood, opened over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend with limited operations.
Winterlike weather has been slow to arrive in the Sierra so far, and other resort operators were hoping the storm would allow them to open for the season.
"It's great news if you're a skier," said weather service spokeswoman Jessica Kielhorn in Reno.
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The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail davem@theunion.com or call 477-4237.
The National Weather Service in Sacramento said snow showers could linger through today into tonight before turning into rain Tuesday. The storm is expected to move out of Nevada County by Tuesday night.
Thanksgiving weekend travelers seeking a break in the storm found tire chains were mandatory Sunday on Interstate 80 over Donner Summit.
Greg Schiessl, a California Highway Patrol dispatcher in Truckee, said motorists faced major delays after I-80's westbound lanes over Donner Summit were shut down for an hour late Sunday morning by two noninjury accidents.
"It backed up (westbound) traffic at Truckee for five miles," he said. "It's super slow going because of all the holiday traffic."
The Boreal ski resort atop Donner Summit reported 5 inches of new snow by late Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service was calling for the storm to drop up to 18 inches of snow on higher elevations around Lake Tahoe by today.
The CHP Web site logged 14 accidents or spinouts and numerous hazards along I-80 from Truckee to Auburn Sunday from 12:30 to 5 p.m. alone, most of them noninjury. According to a CHP spokesperson at the office in Newcastle, none of the wrecks were fatal.
Only one had occurred on Nevada County highways, when a vehicle went into a ditch on Highway 20 near I-80 at 2:45 p.m. No one was hurt in that mishap, either.
Meanwhile, the new snowfall made ski resort personnel happy.
"It's snowing hard, and we're loving it," Boreal spokesman Jon Slaughter said. "There's a buzz in the air that winter is finally here."
Two of Boreal's seven lifts were in operation Sunday, and the resort hoped to open at least two more lifts after the storm, Slaughter said.
Two other Lake Tahoe resorts, Heavenly and Kirkwood, opened over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend with limited operations.
Winterlike weather has been slow to arrive in the Sierra so far, and other resort operators were hoping the storm would allow them to open for the season.
"It's great news if you're a skier," said weather service spokeswoman Jessica Kielhorn in Reno.
ooo
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
ooo
To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail davem@theunion.com or call 477-4237.
