Snowstorm Returning to Western States

Less than a week after the first major snowstorm of the season faded across the Rockies, the next is already on its way.

Parts of Montana and Wyoming were slammed with more than 24 inches of snow as well as blizzard conditions the first four days of last week. The next storm, which began Sunday night, will first impact truckers in the Sierra Nevada.

Snow is coming down along much of the range and some places could see 6 to 12 inches before the storm moves east later Monday. The National Weather Service has winter weather advisories posted, lasting until 9 a.m. PT Monday for the South Lake Tahoe and Truckee, California, areas, as well as Crater Lake, Oregon; until 11 a.m. PT for the Warner Mountains in Modoc County, California; and until noon for the Surprise Valley in California.

Monday night the storm could dump more than 12 inches of snow in the Ruby Mountains of northeastern Nevada, where the NWS has issued a winter weather advisory. Then Monday night and Tuesday snow will spread across the northern Rockies.

Along with gusty winds up to 40 mph, 12 to 24 inches of snow could pile up in some of Wyoming's high elevations, such as the Wind River, Casper, Bighorn, and Laramie mountains. Along parts of the Interstate 25 corridor, drivers could hit areas with 4 to 8 inches of snow. Blowing snow will lead to periods of reduced visibility and potential whiteout conditions. Winter storm watches and warnings have been posted for these areas.

The storm may also produce snow in some areas of northern Utah and western Colorado, but the NWS didn't have alerts issued for these areas as of early Monday morning.

Major lanes of concern in California

• Interstate 25 from Orin, Wyoming, to just north of Casper.
• Interstate 80 from Reno, Nevada, to Truckee.

Other notable weather this week

As the snowstorm exits the Western mountains, it could drop heavy rain and produce severe thunderstorms Wednesday in parts of the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes. This will be followed by showers and storms Thursday in the East.

Click here for more FreightWaves articles by Nick Austin.

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