A record-breaking single-day snowfall for the season was set in the Sierra Nevada on Sunday, as a spring storm swept through the San Francisco Bay area and caused the closure of mountain highways in Northern California.
By Sunday morning, the wet weather system had largely departed from the state. However, officials cautioned that the roads would still be slippery due to the significant snowfall of around two feet (60 centimeters) in certain parts of the Sierra.
“Who would have predicted that the snowiest day of the 2023/2024 season would occur in May? That’s exactly what happened, as noted by the University of California, Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab on the social platform X.”
According to the lab, the snowfall on Sunday reached 26.4 inches (67 centimeters), surpassing the previous second snowiest day of the season, March 3rd, by 2.6 inches (6.6 centimeters).
The Donner Summit experienced treacherous driving conditions on Saturday, leading to the closure of multiple highways in the Lake Tahoe area, including Interstate 80.
Parts of the Bay Area were under flood advisories as the National Weather Service reported up to an inch (2.5 centimeters) of rain and temperatures dipping into the low 40s (around 5 degrees Celsius). Wind gusts reaching 40 mph (64 kph) were also reported near San Francisco on Saturday.
Southern California experienced light rain and gusty winds as the storm swept through the region.
