A Pacific storm system brought moderate snow amounts and difficult travel conditions to the Sierra, along with gusty winds.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS REV wrote it up.
A Pacific storm system brought moderate snow amounts and difficult travel conditions to the Sierra, along with gusty winds.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Reno, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 1, 2:17 PM PST, 1 hour 23 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Reno NV
217 PM PST Mon Feb 1 2021
.SYNOPSIS...
A storm system will bring moderate snow amounts and difficult travel
conditions to the Sierra late tonight into early Wednesday, along
with gusty winds. Lower elevations of eastern California and
western Nevada will see mainly light rain which may end with a
rain and snow mix. A drier pattern with near to below average
temperatures is then likely for the remainder of the week.
&&
.SHORT TERM...
Moisture associated with our next winter weather system is
beginning to push across NW California. This moisture plume will
work its way toward northeast California this evening and the
northern Sierra tonight. Initial snowfall timing looks to reach
western Lassen County and State Routes 36/44 after about 7pm and
into I-80 through the Sierra after about midnight.
Overall, no significant changes to our snowfall outputs with this
storm and still looking for this for this storm to mainly reserve
the best accumulations right along the Sierra crest. Snow amounts
will also favor areas farther north across the Tahoe Basin crest
8-14", with lesser amounts of 0-4" for communities in the Tahoe
Basin and along US-395 in the Eastern Sierra. Southern Mono County
may see an additional inch or two of snowfall with 3-6" along the
crest but not much more than a fresh layer on top of the big
snows from last week.
In addition, gusty winds develop tonight in conjunction with the
snowfall across the Sierra and far northern Washoe county with
gusts around 40-50 mph possible. Along wind prone locations and
canyon openings along Highway 395 through Mono County, localized
gusts up to 60 mph are possible. Areas of blowing snow and sudden
reductions in visibility are also possible through late Tuesday
morning before winds tick down through the afternoon. Elsewhere,
winds gusts will generally remain in the 30-35 mph range. Typical
wind impacts with choppy lake conditions, travel difficulties for
high profile vehicles, and rough air for aviation.
Expect areas of snow showers to continue across the Sierra through
Tuesday afternoon with little in the way of spillover into
western NV. Accumulation up to about an inch or so not out of the
question for western foothills above 5500 feet around Reno down
through the Carson Valley with light rain in the lower valleys.
Snow levels will drop to the valley floors Wednesday morning as a
cold front sweeps through western Nevada. Areas of scattered snow
showers will continue to be possible through the day Wednesday
particularly across the Sierra in addition to northern Washoe
County through Pershing and Churchill counties but accumulations
appear to be minimal at this time for western Nevada. Fuentes
.LONG TERM...Thursday through next weekend...
No major changes to the extended forecast. Weather quiets down quite
a bit for the weekend and beyond, with high pressure ridge setting
up just off the West Coast. This will keep the storm track into
British Columbia and then down into the Rockies and central US.
Northeast flow will remain in place for Thursday, keeping cool
temperatures around for one more day. Temperatures will increase
Friday and through the weekend to above average, with highs into the
50s by Saturday and Sunday.
There is still much uncertainty into next week, although no major
storms look to be on the horizon anytime soon. If the ridge begins
to retrograde west over the Pacific, this will allow for some
shortwaves (sliders) to drop out of the north and into the Great
Basin, but there isn't anything solid as of now. -Hoon
&&
.AVIATION...
Sierra ridge winds will increase through tonight with mountain wave
turbulence and low level wind shear through the period, especially
along and east of the Sierra Crest. Winds will surface this evening
and tonight across much of the region with gusts up to 30-40kts in
northeast California and far northern Washoe County...gusts 20-30kts
elsewhere.
This storm will also bring aviation impacts late tonight and into
Wednesday with terrain obstruction and MVFR/IFR CIG/VIS across the
Sierra terminals. A few inches of snow are possible for the Sierra
terminals (60% chance). There is only a very slight chance of any
accumulations (less than 10%) for western Nevada airports. -Hoon
&&
.REV Watches/Warnings/Advisories...
NV...Lake Wind Advisory until 10 PM PST this evening for Lake
Tahoe in NVZ002.
Winter Weather Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 4 AM PST
Wednesday NVZ002.
CA...Winter Weather Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 4 AM PST
Wednesday above 5500 feet in CAZ071.
Winter Weather Advisory from 4 AM Tuesday to 10 AM PST Wednesday
CAZ073.
Lake Wind Advisory until 10 PM PST this evening for Lake Tahoe
in CAZ072.
Winter Weather Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 4 AM PST
Wednesday CAZ072.
&&
For more information from the National Weather Service visit...
http://weather.gov/renoThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 high wind, 1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Widespread gusts of 40-50 mph in the Truckee and Tahoe area with peak gusts 70 mph at Tahoe Donner and 59 at Floriston.
Widespread high winds impacted the Eastern Sierra and Mono County in the pre-dawn hours of February 3. 109 MPH at Lundy RAWS and 83 MPH at Mammoth Lakes Airport were notable observations. Even such, no significant damage was reported. High profile vehicle prohibitions were in effect on Highway 395.
Measured 8 inches of snow fell at Lake Tahoe level, near Homewood. Other areas saw considerably less ranging from 0.5 to 2 inches in the Truckee and South Lake Tahoe areas.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2021Every state in 2021This day in weather historyWarnings in California, February 2021
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 943659, 943661, 943660.