Carson City area weather: Conditions to ease before next round of storms return by weekend
Wednesday will bring a few rain and snow showers around Carson City and surrounding areas, with a brief precipitation break Thursday and Friday before another potent storm system will move into the region by the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
Light rain and snow showers are possible through the day across western Nevada, with light snow accumulations possible above 5,000 feet. Snow accumulations will generally be 1 to 2 inches, with most areas seeing less than an inch.
At Lake Tahoe and Sierra, snow showers will continue through the evening across the Sierra Nevada and northeast California. Light accumulations are expected down to lake level, with impacts mainly above 6,500 feet. A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. A backcountry Avalanche Warning remains in effect for the Lake Tahoe area.
It looks like Thursday and early Friday will bring a brief break from the winter storms with conditions dry and quiet for the most part, with increased winds across Sierra ridges and some residual snow showers mainly north of Interstate 80.
Some road impacts are possible. The weather service advises people to take advantage of this break to clear gutters and drains, and to restock supplies before a series of storms impacts the region this weekend into early next week.
Heading into the weekend, a series of storms will enter the region beginning Friday, bringing the potential for significant travel disruptions to the Sierra Nevada, according to the weather service in its Wednesday morning forecast discussion. Waves of moderate-to-heavy snowfall are expected in the Sierra through the weekend, with multiple feet of snowfall possible.
Major impacts are expected for travelers heading into the Sierra Nevada this Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday weekend. Plan on difficult travel conditions with significant travel delays possible.
The first in the series of waves will move into the region Friday afternoon, bringing heavy snowfall to the Sierra Nevada, northeast California, and the Eastern Sierra, along with spillover rain into western Nevada as snow levels hover around 5,500 to 6,000 feet.
A second, stronger storm with a tap of subtropical moisture will push through the region Saturday into into Sunday, bringing another round of stronger winds and precipitation, with snow chances down to all valley floors, according to NWS forecasters.
Snowfall could be continuous in the Sierra and northeast California from Friday into early Monday morning, with more breaks for western Nevada. Additional waves of storm activity are likely Sunday into Monday and possibly into Tuesday, bringing continued snow and wind impacts in the Sierra, with chances for snow into western Nevada.