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Avalanche Warning, Winter Weather Advisory for Lake Tahoe

The service says a storm moving into the Tahoe Basin on Monday will bring heavy snow and gale-force winds that will create dangerous avalanche conditions in the backcountry.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA – DEC. 10: Snow dusts the mountains surrounding South Lake Tahoe, Calif. Thursday, December 10, 2020. Vacation travel to Lake Tahoe will be banned for at least three weeks starting Friday due to a regional rise in the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations. (Jessica Christian/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued an avalanche warning and winter weather advisory for much of the Sierra Nevada, including Lake Tahoe into Tuesday morning.

The service says a storm moving into the Tahoe Basin on Monday will bring heavy snow and gale-force winds that will create dangerous avalanche conditions in the backcountry.

The first winter storm brought rain, snow and even hail to Southern California. There was also a traffic build up throughout the region, especially on mountain roads as families headed towards the snow. Christine Kim reports for NBC4 News at 11 p.m. on Dec. 28, 2020.

A winter weather advisory remains in effect until 4 a.m. Tuesday for the Tahoe area as far south as Mammoth Lakes and as far north as Portola and Susanville, California.

As much as 18 inches of snow is expected at elevations higher than 7,000 feet, with 2 to 8 inches below 6,000 feet. Winds could be gusting as high as 55 mph and more than 100 mph at times over Sierra ridges.

The heaviest snow is expected between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday, with bands of snow showers continuing into the evening.

The service says travel could become very difficult. Strong winds could down trees limbs and power lines.

Snow could fall at rates up to 2 inches per hour north of Tahoe, causing localized whiteout conditions over mountain passes at times.

Copyright The Associated Press
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