CALIFORNIA, USA — December kicks off with a series of two winter storms. The first will be full of abundant moisture moving onto the Northern California coastline overnight Wednesday into Thursday morning.
A Winter Weather Warning has been issued Wednesday night into Friday morning for the Sierra Nevada mountain range. 18 to 24 inches of snow is expected at Donner Pass with as much as 30 inches possible through Carson/Ebbetts.
Snow levels will drop as low as 3,000 feet with a light dusting of less than an inch possible around 2,500 feet.
Rainfall for the valley is showing fluctuating totals. Thursday’s totals could be anywhere from a half inch to as much as two inches of rain. This is due to widespread rainfall and some areas receiving intense downpours.
The second winter storm arrives Saturday and will potentially linger into Sunday morning. Sierra snow with the second storm will be a little less intense for some areas, bringing 18 to 24 inches still for Donner Pass, but it's only projected to bring about 18 to 24 inches for Carson/Ebbetts rather than 30 inches.
Rainfall totals with the second storm are expected to be about .50 to 1.0 inch in Sacramento with about .25-.50 inch for Modesto. Grass Valley may see as much as 2 to 3 inches of rainfall.
Aside from the wet weather, strong wind gusts will accompany the storm. Gusts are expected to be about 45 to 65+ mph for the Sierra with the possibility of ridges topping 120 mph.
Valley wind gusts are expected to be about 25 to 35 mph. The timeline for winds will begin early morning Thursday into the afternoon.
Friday morning and Saturday morning will have moments of clear skies and cold temperatures, which are expected to contribute to more fog development and areas of frost.
The next winter weather system to arrive after the weekend may be again late next week.
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