Lake Tahoe Gets Early Gift: Even More Snow

Another storm swept through the Sierra on Saturday, adding to an already-impressive snowpack and delaying motorists on the first day after the start of winter.

The storm had dumped up to a foot of snow at higher elevations of the Lake Tahoe area by the late afternoon.

Even before winter officially began Friday, the Sierra had accumulated half the snow the region typically gets for the entire season.

The latest storm caused delays for holiday motorists as chains or snow tires were mandatory on highways around Tahoe.

Interstate 80’s eastbound lanes were closed Saturday afternoon over Donner Summit because of several accidents, the California Highway Patrol reported.

Westbound motorists on I-80 faced mandatory chain controls, as did all motorists on U.S. 50 over Echo Summit.

“The flakes are really flying again,” said Jody Churich, a spokeswoman for the Boreal ski area atop Donner Summit. “It’s been pretty much snowing all day, and it’s been snowing heavily.”

CHP officers responded to a three-vehicle collision east of Truckee, and a hit-and-run accident involving a man who was chaining up his vehicle in Truckee. No life-threatening injuries were reported.

Buoyed by forecasts for mostly clear skies Christmas week, Tahoe ski resort operators were bracing for large holiday crowds.

“Things couldn’t look better for us. We’re thrilled,” Churich said. “We have the best Christmas skiing conditions in years.”

The National Weather Service was calling for a chance of snow today before a return to dry weather beginning Monday.

“It looks like we’re heading into a pattern of drier weather for the next week or so,” weather service forecaster Steve Goldstein said. “We could still use some more snow, but things are certainly improving” for the summer water outlook.