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Carson City area weather: Winter weather advisory through Thursday, more snow after weekend
In what the National Weather Service expected earlier to be a moderate snow event for the Carson City region and Sierra has instead been downgraded to a Winter Weather Advisory, which runs Wednesday night to Thursday afternoon. This system will bring snow to the valley floors overnight and will likely impact the Thursday morning commute.
While there won't be as much snow as originally anticipated by the National Weather Service, a much larger system, however, is shaping up and is expected to arrive after the weekend.
Forecasters say the storm through Thursday will bring snow, with total snow accumulations of up to 1 inch or so for lower valley areas and of 2 to 6 inches above 5,000 feet. For the Lake Tahoe Basin, total snow accumulations of 2 to 7 inches, except 6 to 12 inches is expected above 7,000 feet. Winds gusting 25 to 40 mph in the Basin with up to 60 mph along Sierra ridge lines.
Motorists should be prepared for the storm later tonight into Thursday, said NWS Meteorologist Scott McGuire, adding that at this time, the Sierra can expected several inches of snow, with the snow level dropping to the valley floors that will impact the Thursday morning commute.
"As the cold front pushes through, the snow levels will drop down to the valley floors, so people need to be prepared for the chance of snow covered roadways in western Nevada and certainly for snowy conditions in the Sierra," he said.
For the valleys, the Winter Weather Advisory is from 8 p.m. Wednesday to 4 p.m. Thursday and extends to the greater Reno, Carson City, Carson Valley areas as well as Washoe, Storey and Lyon counties, the Western Nevada Basin and Range including Pyramid Lake.
NWS forecasters advise that travel could be very difficult. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning commute. Snow levels will start around 6,500 feet Wednesday evening, quickly falling off to 4,500 to 5,000 feet by Thursday morning. Lowest valleys may remain a mix of snow and rain with some seeing up to 1 inch of snow and others not having any accumulation.
Meanwhile, the weather service says the region is shaping up to have an active storm pattern for the next seven to 10 days.
Following Thursday's storm, much colder temperatures are expected Thursday through Saturday, a dramatic shift from the last several weeks of mild weather. Low temperatures into the teens and even single digits are likely Friday and Saturday mornings, especially in areas where there is new snow cover.
These cold temperatures can impact vulnerable and homeless populations, the weather service advises.
Confidence continues to increase in a series of cool winter storms Sunday through Wednesday next week that all together could bring large amounts of snow to the Sierra and precipitation in the lower valleys.
Even Western Nevada valleys could see appreciable snowfall, however there is less certainty on rain versus snow, forecasters say. While potential scenarios remain variable, it's probably best to plan for possible prolonged travel disruptions during this timeframe.
"After this system pushes through Thursday, all eyes will be on the next system pushing through Sunday into early next week," said McGuire.