City wants citizens to be prepared for high winds and cold temperatures

Brrrrrr...

The week ahead in South Lake Tahoe will be a clear one, but very cold as a strong high pressure system builds over the Sierra causing prolonged periods of strong morning inversions.

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a wind advisory for Lake Tahoe from 1:00 p.m. Monday to 10:00 a.m. Tuesday. Winds will be from the East 15-25 mph with gusts to 35 mph. Over the ridges will be as high as 80 mph.

Since most winds around Lake Tahoe come from the west, the winds from the east this week could cause trees and/or branches to fall since they are unaccustomed to winds from that direction.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno is forecasting low temperatures in the days ahead. This pattern will likely last through this weekend and may negatively
impact air quality.

The Forecast:
This Afternoon - Sunny, with a high near 34. Northeast wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Tonight - Mostly clear, with a low around 16. East wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.
Tuesday - Widespread haze. Sunny, with a high near 40. East wind around 10 mph.
Tuesday Night - Widespread haze. Clear, with a low around 15. East wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday - Widespread haze. Sunny, with a high near 45. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday Night - Widespread haze. Clear, with a low around 16.
Thursday - Widespread haze. Sunny, with a high near 48.
Thursday Night- Widespread haze. Mostly clear, with a low around 17.
Friday - Sunny, with a high near 51.
Friday Night - Mostly clear, with a low around 21.
Saturday - Sunny, with a high near 52.
Saturday Night - Mostly clear, with a low around 22.
Sunday - Sunny, with a high near 52.

As temperatures drop this winter, the American Red Cross offers ten steps people can take to stay safe during cold weather:

- Layer up! Wear layers of lightweight clothing to stay warm. Gloves and a hat will help prevent losing your body heat.
- Don’t forget your furry friends. Bring pets indoors. If they can’t come inside, make sure they have enough shelter to keep them warm and that they can get to unfrozen water.
- Remember the three foot rule. If you are using a space heater, place it on a level, hard surface and keep anything flammable (things such as paper, clothing, bedding, curtains or rugs) at least three feet away.
- Requires supervision. Turn off space heaters and make sure fireplace embers are out before leaving the room or going to bed.
- Don’t catch fire! If you are using a fireplace, use a glass or metal fire screen large enough to catch sparks and rolling logs.
- Protect your pipes. Run water, even at a trickle, to help prevent your pipes from freezing. Open the kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. Be sure to move any harmful cleaners and household chemicals out of the reach of children. Keep the garage doors closed if there are water lines in the garage.

Better safe than sorry. Keep the thermostat at the same temperature day and night. Your heating bill may be a little higher, but you could avoid a more costly repair job if your pipes freeze and burst.

- The kitchen is for cooking. Never use a stove or oven to heat your home.
- Use generators outside. Never operate a generator inside the home, including in the basement or garage.
- Knowledge is power. Don’t hook a generator up to the home’s wiring. The safest thing to do is to connect the equipment you want to power directly to the outlets on the generator.

To keep informed from the City of South Lake Tahoe during adverse conditions, sign up for the Emergency Alert, text messaging service which is part of their comprehensive emergency notification system. Whether you live in the city limits or the county, sign up now for Reverse 911.