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Sierra Nevada records snowiest day of the season from a brief but potent storm

NPR | By The Associated Press
Published May 6, 2024 at 1:05 AM EDT
In this photo provided by Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, a snowboarder rides in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., Sunday, May 5, 2024.
Peter Morning
/
AP
In this photo provided by Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, a snowboarder rides in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., Sunday, May 5, 2024.

TRUCKEE, Calif. — A weekend spring storm that drenched the San Francisco Bay area and closed Northern California mountain highways also set a single-day snowfall record for the season on Sunday in the Sierra Nevada.

The wet weather system had mostly moved out of the state by Sunday morning, but officials warned that roads would remain slick after around two feet (60 centimeters) of snow fell in some areas of the Sierra.

"Did anyone have the snowiest day of the 2023/2024 season being in May on their winter bingo card?" the University of California, Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab asked on the social platform X.

The 26.4 inches (67 centimeters) of snowfall on Sunday beat the second snowiest day of the season — March 3rd — by 2.6 inches (6.6 centimeters), according to the lab.

Treacherous driving conditions on Saturday forced the closure of several highways near Lake Tahoe, including Interstate 80 over the Donner Summit.

Flood advisories were issued for parts of the Bay Area, where up to an inch (2.5 centimeters) of rain fell while temperatures dipped into the low 40s (around 5 degrees Celsius), the National Weather Service said. Wind gusts reaching 40 mph (64 kph) were reported Saturday near San Francisco.

The storm brought light rain and gusty winds to Southern California.

Drier and warmer conditions were expected throughout the week.

Copyright 2024 NPR

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