conditions

Snow Days. Kids love 'em, parents maybe not so much.

Last week's five snow days, and a lack of one this week caused some parents to raise concern with how the Lake Tahoe Unified School (LTUSD) decides when to close school for the day.

Closing school is always a tough call for school superintendents across the country, so what is the science behind closing schools when it snows in the Lake Tahoe Unified School District?

Snowplow operators have been working 12-hour shifts to get the roads in South Lake Tahoe cleared of snow, and they will continue widening roads starting Friday to prepare for the next storm.

During winter snow conditions, snow plows have the right of way on streets and vehicles left unattended in the streets are subject to a citation and/or getting towed. Law enforcement is seeing a large number of cars parked on neighborhood streets and not where they belong in driveways.

The four-mile section of SR-89 around Emerald Bay remains closed after recent storms dumped snow on Lake Tahoe. Caltrans maintenance staff have begun the process of clearing the roadway which has up to 30 feet of snow in some locations as well as debris from last week's storm.

Updated 9:45 p.m. - Three cars were involved in a series of incidents on Pioneer Trail that ended with one overturned car just before 6:30 p.m. Monday night.

According to Capt. Al Martinez of South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue, a truck driving westbound near Price Road spun out of control on ice and ended up in a snowbank. One vehicle traveling in the opposite direction saw what happened and was able to stop, but a second car behind them had to make an evasive maneuver which resulted in an overturned car.

Friday's board meeting of the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) was delayed almost two hours due to ice on the road near near Zephyr Cove, causing it to close, and those weren't the only icy conditions on the South Shore that day.

The other ice could be felt during the meeting as conflict of interest, ethics, integrity, suspicious actions and lack of transparency were the theme of the day.

All three items on the agenda Friday were placed there amid a stressed relationship between the City of South Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County and Patrick Wright, the Executive Director of the CTC.

Good morning riders and skiers, and if you are visiting, welcome to Lake Tahoe!

Today is Saturday, January 14.

ALL RESORTS ARE OPEN AND GEARED UP FOR YOUR DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. WEEKEND. PLENTY OF FRESH TRACKS TO BE MADE AS WELL AS MACHINE GROOMED CORDUROY… EXPECT DELAYS IN SOME LIFTS & TERRAIN OPENINGS.

STAY ON DESIGNATED OPEN RUNS ONLY AND BE SAFE. STAY OUT OF THE BACK COUNTRY TODAY…

TODAY’S WEATHER (NWS GREATER LAKE TAHOE AREA): Expect Mostly Cloudy Skies in the morning… then, becoming Partly Cloudy… Highs: 29F to 34F. Light winds.

The Douglas County road crews cannot work anymore hours over the three-day weekend due to their having reached the maximum number of driving hours allowed due to flooding and snow conditions in the Carson Valley over the last week.

Hours are regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The Douglas County staff can resume regular duty on Tuesday January 17, 2017 at 7:00 a.m. If an emergency arises, staff may be called in after 5:00 a.m. on Sunday.

Good morning skiers and riders, and if you are visiting, welcome to Lake Tahoe!

Today is January 12.

A WINTER STORM WARNING CONTINUES TODAY THRU 10:00PM THIS EVENING… GOOD NEWS IS THERE’S MORE SNOW FALLING AND WINDS HAVE DIED DOWN…

MOST RESORTS ARE DIGGING OUT AND PLANNING TO HAVE SOME LIFTS TURNING… EXPECT DELAYS AND LOWER MOUNTAIN LIFTS TO OPEN FIRST AND UPPER MOUNTAIN LIFTS AFTER SNOW SAFETY. CALL AHEAD…

STAY ON DESIGNATED OPEN RUNS ONLY AND BE SAFE. STAY OUT OF THE BACK COUNTRY TODAY…

All schools in the Lake Tahoe Unified School District will be closed on Thursday, January 12 due to the continuing blizzard.

"Snow removal conditions are ongoing and very difficult due to the amount of and consistency of the snow," said Christy Blach, Transportation Supervisor for the district. "Roads are too narrow for school buses to navigate safety. Roads are too hazardous for students to get to bus stops safely."

Only essential staff should report to work, District Office, snow removal and maintenance.

Power outages are still plaguing Lake Tahoe area residents and businesses, and Liberty Utility crews have been working nonstop to deal with the issues caused by the blizzard. There are currently approximately 20,000 customers without power in El Dorado, Placer and Nevada counties.

"All Liberty Utilities and NV Energy crews have worked together through the night," said Liberty Utilities spokesperson Kathy Carter. "Because of the numerous large trees that have fallen through lines and wires down, it is causing the restoration process to be very slow working one community at a time."

2:00 p.m. update - Power has been restored to a majority of customers in the Northstar, Squaw, Olympic Valley, Alpine Meadows, Glenshire, Martis Camp and Truckee areas. Liberty Utilities anticipates customers in Kings Beach, Tahoe City and Portola/Loyalton will also be restored today, Wednesday.

There are still challenges to restoring power from Emerald Bay to south of Homewood.

No word on how many South Lake Tahoe customers are still without power, or how long to get it back on.

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South Tahoe Refuse is letting customers know that, due to the current blizzard conditions, there may be a delay in refuse and recycling services.

"STR will make every effort to complete collection routes as scheduled," said STR.
"Customers have the option to bring their weekly solid waste to the Transfer Station at no charge due to the inaccessibility of their streets."

The South Tahoe Refuse Transfer Station is located at 2140 Ruth Avenue. For more information, visit their website www.southtahoerefuse.com.

Snow. You know, that frozen, fluffy white stuff that covers the mountains around Lake Tahoe? With less than stellar snowpacks over the last several winters, many might have forgotten what snowstorms really could look like in South Lake Tahoe. This week, however, memories are being refreshed with a blizzard impacting the Sierra Nevada that could bring up to seven feet of snow to the lake.

Due to current weather conditions in South Lake Tahoe, the Barton Health system will have limited operations. They are asking patients to contact their care providers' office to confirm their operating hours: http://www.bartonhealth.org/directory

- Barton Emergency Department (2170 South Ave, South Lake Tahoe, CA) will operate normally, 24/7.
- Barton Urgent Care (155 Highway 50, Stateline, NV) is planning to operate as scheduled, from 8am-6pm.

Based upon the National Weather Service issued blizzard warning, the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit offices in South Lake Tahoe and Incline Village will be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

They plan to re-open on Thursday morning, conditions permitting.

Due to extreme weather conditions in South Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County has closed their offices at the lake.

Judge Suzanne Kingsbury said the South Lake Tahoe branch of the El Dorado Superior Court will be closed on Tuesday, January 10, 2017. Those who have a court case today will be trailed until tomorrow at the same time it was scheduled Tuesday.

All other court locations will be open.

Court users can contact the court website at www.eldoradocourt.org for additional information and updates.

If you or your child go to school in Lake Tahoe, consider yourself off for the day.

Lake Tahoe Unified School District has canceled school on Tuesday, January 10 due to blizzard conditions, extending the two-week break another day.

Lake Tahoe Community College is closed. Sierra Nevada College is closed.

Both Douglas County Schools at the lake, Zephyr Cove Elementary and George Whittell High School are closed. Jacks Valley Elementary School in the valley is closed due to flooding but all other County schools are open.

7:25 p.m. update Sunday - A second evacuation site has been set up at South Tahoe Middle School in the Multi-Purpose Room. It will accommodate pets and is staffed by the City of South Lake Tahoe staff and South Tahoe Action Team volunteers.

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The City of South Lake Tahoe and American Red Cross have opened an evacuation center at South Tahoe High School in the school's student union.

It is located at 1735 Lake Tahoe Boulevard. The Recreation Swim Complex is not available as an evacuation center due to flooding at that location.

The Douglas County Board of Commissioners have declared a State of Emergency in preparation for the significant flooding event forecast for this weekend. The declaration has been submitted to the State of Nevada and will allow regional partners to speed up the delivery of resources required to more effectively respond to an emergency and meet the needs of the community during a time of crisis and well as take the first steps toward a State declaration.

9:45 a.m. update- Chain controls over Echo Summit have been removed as rain starts to make its way into the Lake Tahoe Basin. Expect other controls to be dropped but always be prepared and log onto http://nvroads.com/ and http://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/ for the most up to date road information.

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With flood warnings up around Northern California and Western Nevada, Douglas County officials are alerting residents of a flood watch issued for the area from late Saturday night January 7 through Monday morning, January 9.

Douglas County Emergency Management is preparing for changing flood conditions and the safety of Douglas County residents.

Good morning Lake Tahoe skiers and rider, and if you're visiting, welcome to Lake Tahoe!

Today is January 5.

LOTS OF FRESH POWDER REPORTED AT ALL RESORTS… THE WINTER STORM WARNING IS POSTED THRU 10AM THIS MORNING… ALL LIFTS WILL OPERATE WIND & WEATHER PERMITTING AND WITH DELAYS FOR SNOW SAFETY PROCEDURES… CALL AHEAD.

R1 & R2 ROAD RESTRICTIONS ARE POSTED ON ALL HIGHWAYS IN AND AROUND LAKE TAHOE. HWY 89 EMERALD BAY ROAD & HWY 207 KINGSBURY GRADE ARE CLOSED.

BUCKLE UP AND CARRY TIRE CHAINS AND BE PREPARED FOR WINTER DRIVING CONDITIONS…

10:10 a.m. update 1/4/17 - Highway 50 over Spooner Summer is now open, but with chain or snow tire requirements from Stateline to SR28.

Update on current conditions:

US 50 from Meyers to Twin Bridges - Chains or 4WD with snow tires on all 4 wheels.
SR 89 from Christmas Valley to Hope Valley - Chains or 4WD with snow tires on all 4 wheels over the summit. At 9:32 a.m. a tree fell down onto the roadway and they are clearing it now.
SR 89 through Emerald Bay is closed at this time.

With roads clear on Sunday it still took drivers almost three hours to make it the 99 miles Stateline to Sacramento, and it appears today will be worse due to heavy snow and chain controls.

The California Highway Patrol is currently working on a collision by Ice House Road and Highway 50 and they closed the road at 11:16 a.m. to clear the vehicles.

They are also working on accidents near Bridal Veil Falls and the old St. Paulie's Inn. Bridal Veil Falls area was also the scene of many Sunday evening accidents.