A monster blizzard is causing chaos along the west coast, posing life-threatening conditions from California to Nevada to Colorado. The storm has blanketed the region with several feet of snow, fierce winds, and even spawned a tornado outside of Fresno, California.
Whiteout conditions have led to drivers being stranded and multiple collisions on Interstate 80, prompting authorities to shut down a major stretch close to Nevada. Blizzard warnings are in effect through much of Sunday for many areas in California, with extreme impacts expected.
The storm is intensifying, with damaging winds gusting up to 100 MPH and heavy snowfall rates of up to four inches per hour. Snow totals have already exceeded 3 feet in some areas, with reports of 32 inches in Mount Rose ski base and 42 inches in Kingdale.
In the Sierra Nevadas, rare blizzard warnings have been issued, highlighting the severity of the storm. Thundersnow has been reported over parts of Salt Lake City, with lightning adding to the extreme weather conditions.
Wind gusts have reached up to 114 MPH in Mammoth Mountain, with gusts of 70 MPH expected to continue. Fire conditions in the central plains, particularly in the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles, remain a concern with red flag warnings in effect due to high winds and low humidity.
Over a million acres have already burned in parts of the Texas panhandle, with a fire that is only 15% contained. The fire weather conditions are expected to persist through the weekend, posing ongoing challenges for firefighting efforts.
