Highway 50 now closed

  • Cars stopped at Twin Bridges for 7 hours before road closing.
    Cars stopped at Twin Bridges for 7 hours before road closing.
  • Cars stopped at Meyers for 7 hours before road closing.
    Cars stopped at Meyers for 7 hours before road closing.

After drivers were stuck on both sides of Echo Summit starting at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, Caltrans has closed the highway as of 7:05 p.m. Eastbound traffic is being stopped at the Sly Park, and westbound in Meyers. Unsafe driving conditions due to heavy snow and the threat of avalanches have been a concern all day.

As of 7:00 p.m., cars hadn’t moved much. For a short time at 4:00 p.m. Caltrans was attempting escorted travel from Meyers heading west before closing down the highway.

In talking to a SLT firefighter/paramedic stuck in Twin Bridges since 2:00 p.m., all cars had snow surrounding them so many were unable to turn around.

Per Caltrans, at this time the estimated time of opening the highway is between 3:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m.

I-80 is closed in both directions as is the Mt. Rose Highway, Carson Pass and Luther Pass. Kingsbury Grade is also closed from the summit to the Carson Valley due to a sinkhole.