The storm will continue to move across the West before “developing into a possible blizzard” in the coming days, according to the National Weather Service.
A section of California Highway 89 in the Lake Tahoe area was closed due to heavy snow.
The storm’s impact on the Northeast is still unknown.
On Sunday, a powerful winter storm slammed parts of Southern California with more than 7 inches of rain and promised to snarl travel with feet of snow in some areas from the Golden State’s mountains through the Midwest.
The storm will continue to move across the West before “developing into a possible blizzard” in the coming days, according to the National Weather Service. The system was expected to sweep across the country from Colorado to Minnesota from Monday to Wednesday, bringing driving snow, high winds, and freezing rain.
“Heavy snow will have significant impacts across the country,” the weather service warned. “Travelling may become impossible.”
The highway patrol reported that a stretch of California Highway 89 in the Lake Tahoe area was closed due to heavy snow. The weather service predicted 5 feet of snow and whiteout conditions in parts of the Sierra Nevada on Sunday and Monday. Parts of I-80 and other roads were also closed.
AccuWeather said that as the storm moves east, parts of I-90 and I-94, two major highways in the Upper Midwest, could be forced to close as the snow piles higher.
According to the weather service, an atmospheric “bowling ball” could bring snow and a slight chance of thunderstorms to southwest California on Sunday. The bowling ball is expected to move across the region’s northwest and southeast areas Sunday night into early Monday.
Heavy mountain snowfall has been reported in Lake Tahoe and the Sierra Nevada.
Heavy mountain snow was reported in northeast California, the Greater Lake Tahoe region, western Nevada, and the Eastern Sierra Nevada, according to the weather service.
The Greater Lake Tahoe region has received up to 48 inches of snow since Friday, according to the weather service. The weather service also warned of hazardous mountain travel conditions that could last until early Monday, with 1 to 2 feet of additional snow possible above 4,500 feet in the Sierra Nevada.
According to Liberty Utilities’ outage map, nearly 22,000 customers were without power around Lake Tahoe on Sunday night. The map indicated that the estimated restoration time would be Monday at 12 p.m. PST. A winter storm warning is still in effect for the area, and temperatures are expected to drop to freezing or below freezing overnight.
Deluge in Southern California; flooding and tornadoes possible in the south
The weather service reported that parts of Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties in Southern California were under siege from more than 7 inches of rain. More than 4 inches of rain fell in some parts of Los Angeles County, and localised rainfall rates of up to an inch per hour soaked parts of southwestern California, with total rainfall reaching three inches in some places.
