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Winds whip up blizzard-like conditions in Sierra |
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Friday, 01 February 2008 |
 A snow cat on Mammoth Mountain breaks trail during a heavy winter storm earlier this week. Though last week's light snowfall in Inyo County was a delight to local residents, Mono County has been plagued by relentless heavy snow and wind, causing accidents, highway closures and at least one avalanche. Photo courtesy Mammoth Mountain By Mike Gervais
Register Staff 1-31-2008
There is no better way to describe the state of U.S. 395 Tuesday night than chaos.
High winds caused so many minor accidents on the highway that the Bridgeport office of the California Highway Patrol has yet to accumulate an official count. Making matters worse was an avalanche that closed the highway north of Conway Summit.
Winds in excess of 75 miles per hour blew six-foot tall snow-drifts onto the highway and caused white-out conditions from the June Lake Junction down to State Route 203 where the CHP closed U.S. 395.
“It was very dangerous last night,” CHP Sergeant Dan Larza said Wednesday. “There were numerous, numerous wrecks, and most of them were multiple vehicles, but so far we haven’t been able to count them.”
Larza explained that officers with the Bridgeport Office of the CHP have been working 15- to 16-hour shifts this past week, and due to road conditions between substations of the department, paperwork and other reports have been slow-moving.
“Fortunately, so far, I have not heard of any serious injuries, and I know we have no fatalities,” Larza said. “There have been some minor injuries.”
Before Tuesday, U.S. 395 “was closed twice this past week due to the wind blowing snow drifts across the road and blowing cars across the lanes, causing accidents,” California Highway Patrol Public Affairs Officer Jennifer Steel said. “We’ve had very windy conditions, causing white-out, snow and ice hazards.”
The CHP has closed U.S. 395 periodically throughout the month due to high winds and snowfall, but Tuesday’s conditions were some of the most volatile the area has ever seen.
“It really wasn’t the snowfall, it was the high wind blowing snow onto the road” that was so dangerous, Larza said.
With six-foot snow drifts accumulating on the road near Lee Vining and Crowley Lake due to the winds, the CHP and Caltrans began conducting escorts from S.R. 203 down to Tom’s Place early Tuesday, but as conditions worsened last night, even the escorts found themselves in harm’s way.
“Caltrans and the Highway Patrol were trying to get people out and they got stuck. They were temporarily stuck in a snow drift, but they got out,” Larza said.
Unconfirmed reports claim that snow cats from Mammoth Mountain Ski Area were dispatched to pull the stranded officers and Caltrans employees out of the snow banks.
Larza, who was on patrol near Conway Summit Tuesday night, said he reached a stretch of about eight miles of white-out conditions. “It was one of the only times on this job where I was really scared. I couldn’t see and I know there are cliffs there,” he said.
But even in areas where motorists had acceptable visibility, the road was a dangerous place due to wind and ice.
With relatively clear weather Wednesday morning and afternoon, Caltrans began snow removal at the Conway Summit avalanche which is estimated at 40 feet long and six feet high. Crews are also conducting avalanche control at Lee Vining Hill, north of Lee Vining, were avalanche detectors signaled a problem area.
Wednesday morning the CHP was able to open U.S. 395, and officers were assigned to escort motorists from S.R. 203 to Tom’s Place.
There is no estimate on when the Conway Summit may be cleared, and with more storms predicted for this weekend, motorists can expect delays, chain controls and even closures continuing throughout the week.
With the highway closures, escorts and chain restrictions put into effect due to the volatile weather, Steel said the CHP has been dealing with noncompliant motorists attempting to enter mandatory chain restriction areas without chains, and drivers attempting to pass other vehicles even as the CHP was escorting travelers.
A major problem the CHP has encountered is residents from Inyo and Mono counties who feel that because they live here, they don’t have to use chains in the required areas.
“Our local residents are required to adhere to chain restrictions as well as everyone else,” Steel said.
Steel also provided some highway safety tips.
• Be Patient – drive slow in inclement weather.
• Adhere to Chain Controls – Chain controls are for the safety of travelers and provide traction on snow and ice.
• Be Comfortable – If motorists don’t feel comfortable traveling in inclement weather, they should stay home.
• Check Road Conditions – The most up-to-date road conditions are available by calling 511.
According to local weatherman Howard Sheckter, winds on Tuesday reached more than 150 miles per hour at the high- altitude peaks of the Eastern Sierra, and 70-75 miles per hour in the valleys.
Sheckter credits the series of storms this month to a La Nina storm pattern.
“This pattern is highlighted by northwest sliders – storms that come in from the Pacific and move north, picking up cold air. Then they’re followed by the ‘inside slider,’ another storm that ‘drops in’ behind the first,” Sheckter said.
“There is one storm every couple of days, and this is the windiest pattern for Mono County,” he added.
For many residents, the weather has been welcome in the parched regions of Inyo County.
January has been a wet month already, and in just 30 days, Bishop has seen more rainfall than the 30-year annual monthly average of 1.11 inches. The annual average for Bishop is 5.37 inches and the town has already seen 6.72 inches this month.
But Bishop isn’t the only area of the Inyo County seeing a wet winter.
Lone Pine and Independence each got an unheard-of four inches of snow between Wednesday, Jan. 23 and Thursday, Jan. 24.
The snowfall “was really good around here,” said Lone Pine resident Linda Duarte. Yesterday, Duarte said the weather was “beautiful,” with clouds and a little breeze, and relatively mild temperatures.
“There are still a few piles of snow around, and you can see some in the Alabamas,” she said.
Independence saw much of the same, with about four inches of snow that stuck around for about two days.
“We’ve got sporadic rain, but not a whole lot, and we always have wind. It was really windy last night,” said Independence resident Sandee Kennedy, who rose early last Wednesday morning to capture photos of the rare snow cover near her home.
As of this Wednesday, Kennedy said it was “sunny and nice” in Independence.
All the storms, and the snow they have brought, have also had some positive effects in Mono County. As of Tuesday, Jan. 29, Mammoth Mountain logged its fourth highest snowfall on record for the month of January since 1969. According to the Mammoth Mountain Web site, the ski area has seen about 148 inches this year. The most snow recorded in the month of January was in 1993, when the mountain received 188 inches. In 1995 the mountain got 180 inches and in 2006 the mountain received 154 inches.
The mountain is currently operating with a 95- to 120-inch base, having received 43 inches between Saturday, Jan. 26 and Wednesday, Jan. 30.
According to Sheckter, the windy, cold, stormy weather is likely to continue off and on throughout the remainder of the winter.
“We should get a break the early part of next week,” he said. “Next week should actually be pretty pleasant with a slight thaw in the higher elevations. But I don’t think it’s going to be permanent.”
The National Weather Service is predicting a 30 percent chance of snow on Saturday and a 30 percent chance of snow or precipitation on Sunday. Sunny skies are expected early next week.
Temperatures are expected to remain below normal for the remainder of the week with another set of storms coming in this weekend. Sheckter said the larger of the two storms will come in Saturday night, bringing more high winds in both Inyo and Mono counties and a 30 percent chance of snow. |
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 08 March 2008 )
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