A cold winter storm brought low snow levels, with accumulating snow extending into the northern Sacramento Valley and the foothills. This caused disruption to travel, including the city of Redding and Interstate 5, which was closed north of Fawndale.
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 STO wrote it up.
A cold winter storm brought low snow levels, with accumulating snow extending into the northern Sacramento Valley and the foothills. This caused disruption to travel, including the city of Redding and Interstate 5, which was closed north of Fawndale.
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 Sacramento, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 6, 2:54 PM PST, 10 hours 36 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Sacramento CA 254 PM PST Mon Mar 6 2023 .SYNOPSIS... Active weather pattern through Wednesday will bring additional rounds of snow over the foothills and mountains and scattered Valley showers. A wet, warm storm system late this week into the weekend will bring higher elevation snow along with moderate to heavy rain to the Valley and foothills with local flooding impacts of small creeks and streams possible. && .Discussion... After a brief break in rain and snow showers overnight, radar is showing snow began again over the Sierra, Coastal Range, and Shasta County mountains this morning with scattered showers across the Valley. A longwave trough sitting along the PacNW and northern California coast will remain through midweek, with multiple shortwaves moving along the flow. One wave is what has brough a return of showers today into tomorrow with another wave producing another shot of moderate to heavy mountain snow tomorrow evening into Wednesday morning. An additional 1 to 1.5 feet of snow is forecast over the Sierra today and another 1 to 2 feet of snow expected tomorrow through Wednesday. Low snow levels remain through Wednesday, down to 2500 feet over the Sierra and 1000 to 1500 feet over Shasta County and the southern Cascades. In the morning hours tomorrow, light snow is possible down to the Valley floor in Tehama and Shasta counties, though accumulation will be limited. Isolated thunderstorms are also possible across the Valley today and tomorrow in the afternoon and evening hours with CAPE values are forecast around 100-400 J/kg. Highest instability and therefore best chances for thunderstorms are today. Tomorrow, best chances will be in the northern Sacramento Valley. Cool temperatures will continue into late week as the current longwave trough continues to bring cold air into northern California. Valley and foothill high temperatures will be in the high 40s to mid 50s. Thursday morning is forecast to be the coolest with Valley temperatures near freezing. A brief break in precipitation is expected late Wednesday into much of Thursday before the next major storm is slated to impact northern California later Thursday into the weekend. More details in the extended forecast. -HEC && .EXTENDED DISCUSSION (Friday THROUGH Monday)... Confidence is increasing for a warmer storm to move through interior northern California later this week and over the weekend as ensemble guidance and cluster analysis come into better agreement. This storm is trending warmer than the most recent winter storm, with snow levels expected to be much higher. Additionally, the Extreme Forecast Index is highlighting most of interior NorCal for anomalous wind speed and wind gusts for Friday, as breezy south to southwest winds develop with this system. Precipitation first moves in late Thursday, and spreads inland Friday through Sunday, with the heaviest amounts expected on Friday. The National Blend of Models (NBM) has snow levels initially starting off around 3000 to 5000 feet Thursday night, but quickly rising up to 6000 to 8000 feet on Friday. Snow levels lower slightly over the weekend back to around 5000 to 7000 feet. At this point, storm total precipitation from WPC is looking like 1 to 3 inches in the Valley and 2.5 to 6 inches in the foothills and mountains ending early Monday. This will not be a repeat of the 1997 flooding as this storm is not as strong or as warm. The main impacts with this storm will be confined to slick roads, rises on small creeks and rivers from rain and snow melt mainly below 5000 feet, and local ponding of water on roadways. Unsettled weather looks to continue into early next week with additional rounds of precipitation possible through the middle of next week, however confidence is much lower that far out in time. && .AVIATION... Weather system is bringing scattered rain showers across the Valley and snow showers over the mountains and foothills through Tuesday morning. In the Valley, VFR conditions expected next 24 hours except for local MVFR in isolated thunderstorms through 03z Tuesday. Also, isolated MVFR/IFR conditions in the northern Sacramento Valley due to low ceilings/visibility through Tuesday morning. Over the mountains and foothills, areas of MVFR/IFR with local LIFR due to snow and rain showers. Surface winds generally less than 12 kts with gusts up to 30 to 40 kts in the mountains. && .STO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Wednesday for Shasta Lake Area / Northern Shasta County. Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Wednesday for Burney Basin / Eastern Shasta County. Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Wednesday for Mountains Southwestern Shasta County to Western Colusa County. Winter Storm Warning until 10 AM PST Wednesday for Motherlode- Northeast Foothills/Sacramento Valley-West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada-Western Plumas County/Lassen Park. &&
2 heavy snow, 1 winter storm, 1 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Accumulated heavy snow from a series of storms caused the roof of a school in Nevada City to collapse. There was 3.6 inches of snow reported 2 NNW of Nevada City on the 8th, but this was in addition to previous snow and road from earlier storms.
Caltrans reported 13 inches of snow at Castle Peak, while Boreal Ski Resort reported 13 inches of snow and Central Sierra Snow Lab 10.6 inches. This brought chain controls and travel delays on Interstate 80 and US Highway 50.
There was 9.2 inches of snow measured at Lower Lassen Peak. Chester 0.9 NNE reported 8 inches of snow. Shingletown 2.5 NE reported 5.7 inches of snow.
Low elevation snow fell over the northern Sacramento Valley with significant accumulation into Redding. Snowfall reports included 7 inches at Happy Valley (900 feet), 6.0 inches for West Redding (500 feet), 5 inches at North Redding (500 feet), and 5 inches in southern Redding, in the city. Interstate 5 northbound was closed 10 miles north of Redding at Fawndale due to winter weather conditions from 5:29 pm 3/9 to 9:58 am 3/10.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2023Every state in 2023This day in weather historyWarnings in California, March 2023
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: 1090535, 1090536, 1090537, 1090534.