You probably woke a lot of you up.
The good news flights at
Sacramento International Airport
don't appear to be impacted.
The bad news? All that snow has
shut down Interstate 80 overnight.
Here's what else is being
impacted this morning.
We've been checking with local
school districts all morning
and there are multiple closures.
You can see them right here on your screen.
Now, some schools are closed
while others are just at a delay.
Start this morning.
Now it's not on your screen,
but we've learned within
the last few minutes.
That all Grass Valley schools
and district programs are closed.
Head to abc10.com for more details.
We are continuing to update that.
We have a Web team working on all of that.
PG&E is reporting multiple
outages across California.
The worst appears to be in and
around Clear Lake in Lake County
and near Danville in the Bay Area.
We're also tracking smud outages
because of the heavy rain in the valley.
Not too many to report here about 2000,
but downtown. Sacramento and Orange
Veil are seen the worst of it.
And of course we have team coverage
on today's rare winter storm.
ABC 10s Bridget Piolo and Marcus Allen
are checking out the low snow right now.
First, though, let's check in with
ABC10 meteorologist Rob Karmark
teaming up with Jordan Tolbert for
the skies and the roads right now.
So Robbie, you set the table for us a
couple of days ago and you warned us all.
Is the impact what you thought it would be?
Yes, I do.
I I do think it's all lining up.
We're seeing low snow.
We're seeing strong winds.
Heavy rain right now we're seeing closures.
We're just seeing everything
come together all at once.
And for those of you in the lower
foothills and that one to 2000
foot level hoping to see more,
let's let's face it, the impacts are
going to be less than in other places.
And it's always nice to get those photos,
say an old historic Placerville. You know,
there's more cold air coming on the way.
So just wait through today and we'll see
where we end up in places like Big Sur.
I mean look at this folks.
This is California at its absolute finest.
We've got green grass, the Pacific.
Ocean right next to Snow covered mountains.
So this is going to be another
day with many impacts.
The kitchen sink of weather all coming
our way with hard rain, strong winds,
heavy snow and cold temperatures and it
is ripping along with the winds as well.
Now one thing that's changed in the last,
I would say 3-4 hours is that
the system's pulling in a lot of
really wet air from the South.
So that's actually raising our temperatures,
raising the snow level by 500 to
1000 feet during the morning hours.
But remember on the backside of
this we've got a lot of cold air.
That will continue to drain in.
So we're not done yet with the
low snow potential,
lower visibility up high,
that's why I 80s closed at the moment.
So again when I say everything's coming
together, that's what this looks like.
We've got low pressure,
tons of moisture just slamming
border to border folks.
We're talking snow all the way up to
California, Oregon border and then
all the way down to San Diego as well.
So this is the peak of the storm that's
nailing our local area right now.
We talk about the snow,
look at the rain, it is a mess.
It is raining extremely hard right now and.
Any direction around Sacramento,
as well As for Tracy and Stockton
and Modesto as well.
And you can see like the cold air
I was talking about coming down,
look at this.
Chico went from heavy rain to
heavy snow within the last hour.
We'll have more on the roads
right now with Jordan.
Well, we've been seeing really windy
conditions out there on the roads as well
as rain and snow all around the area,
places like I-80 at W Capitol.
We're seeing really windy conditions as well
as the Yolo bypass and the Yolo Causeway.
That's also where we're seeing a crash this
morning that's causing delays to traffic.
Other delays to traffic happening where we're
seeing chain controls this morning on Hwy.
50 where Marcus Allen is right now,
Myers to east of Placerville,
so all the way from near Placerville all
the way up to the South Lake Tahoe area,
which by the way is one of the
only ways to get into the Tahoe.
Area from the valley spots Eastbound
80 is closed at Colfax all the
way to state line and near Colfax.
That's where we're gonna find ABC
10s Bridget Biolo this morning
tracking those conditions.
So, Bridget, what's it looking
like out there on the roads?
While Jordan is looking very snowy
wherever you are along Interstate 80,
also zero visibility,
which is why the Interstate has been
closed from Colfax and the Nevada state
line since yesterday afternoon with
no sign of it opening anytime soon.
I want to show you how much
snow has fallen overnight.
About a foot of it.
Very powdery, but not ideal to drive in.
Let's look at the Interstate.
You're taking a live look at I-80.
Take a look at those semis.
Age along the side of the road.
They've been there all night long just
waiting for the all clear from Caltrans,
who right now says it is just not
safe to travel along this road.
Last night there were a lot of spinouts,
which is why they had to
close the Interstate.
But keep in mind about the
impact to the supply chain.
Caltrans estimates more than
30,000 cars and 6200 semis use
Interstate 80 every single day.
Semis.
They carry millions of dollars worth
of goods to get up the mountain.
So every day I-80 is closed.
It costs the supply chain about
$100 million in losses.
So that's something that Caltrans considers.
Another thing they consider
is the tourism impact.
We passed a number of drivers near
the Colfax closure who is waiting to
get the mountain to ski snowboard,
get to their weekend plans.
It's a Friday, after all.
Not only does it impact recreation,
but also.
Business and the economy and
the Greater Tahoe area.
Think about all the hotel stays that
are gonna have to be cancelled.
Think about all the gas stations
are better going to be taking a hit
along Interstate 80 that rely on
customers to fill up their tanks,
buy food, the list goes on.
So we're still waiting for when
Caltrans is going to clear these roads
and open it back up for travelers,
but one option you're going to have is Hwy.
50 that is still back open.
Mark as Allen is out there tracking
the conditions and mark I can imagine.
A lot of drivers would get the
idea to go along Hwy.
50 to get to Tahoe,
so it might be a traffic mess today.
Mess is an understatement.
Uh, this is your only route to Tahoe,
and indeed, some people have to come.
And if you take a look, it's getting
backed up for as far as the eye can see.
The snow is falling lower than most
people expect. You're only about
a mile outside of Placerville.
Where you going to see that sign?
Chain control.
They will turn you down if you don't have
a four by four or have applicable chains.
I'm going to talk to a couple people
who are probably caught off guard.
We're on live TV right now.
Only ask you a couple questions.
Were you prepared for this? Yes.
Is it frustrating, despite the preparedness?
I no. I love the snow.
Where are you from? Michigan.
So you know, stranger to Snow? No.
Alright. So headed up there for fun.
For recreation.
Did you know well in advance that you were
gonna have snow at this level? Yeah. No.
We knew exactly what we were getting into.
Hopefully they open up the
roads and we can get up there.
Awesome. And what's your name?
Nick. This is nick.
He is the only person we've seen
with a smile on his face today.
Have a great weekend when
you do finally get up there.
Chain controls in effect.
Typically people.
That like him are experience coming up.
Know that there if there are going
to be change controls there at about
the 5000 foot level ECHO summit we'll
just know now they're much lower
earlier this morning snow falling in
Cameron Park and even Shingle Springs
right now falling occasionally the
size of cotton balls back to you.
Wow. That's pretty big.
Glad you ran into Nick who's used
to this from Michigan and a good
perspective and he's he's heading up
and anybody who wants to go to the
East Coast of the United States has
got to go right past Marcus Allen
at this point since 80 is closed.
OK. NSA. Thank you. Be safe.
Yeah, Nick, he is prepared
and he's ready.
He wants that road back open.
Marcus Allen, thank you.
Remember, you can get weather
forecasts in your own
neighborhood hour by hour.
You can also get the interactive
radar to track rain and wind speeds.
And of course, please upload your
weather photos and your videos,
send them to us right here at ABC 10,
and we will air them on air and online.
We're certainly interested in what you're
dealing with to the moment, as we all are.