Special Weather Statement

From the National Weather Service office in Sacramento: COLD WINTER STORM HEADED FOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THIS WEEK... AFTER A BRIEF BREAK IN THE WEATHER PATTERN MONDAY...FORECAST MODELS ARE INDICATING THAT THE PASSAGE OF A COLD PACIFIC STORM SYSTEM WILL IMPACT NORTHERN CALIFORNIA BEGINNING TUESDAY AND WILL CONTINUE TO IMPACT THE REGION AT LEAST THROUGH FRIDAY. RAIN AND MOUNTAIN SNOW WILL BEGIN FALLING OVER NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA BY MID DAY TUESDAY. THE INITIAL COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE SIERRA NEVADA BY LATE TUESDAY AFTERNOON OR EVENING. THE TRANS SIERRA PASSES WILL LIKELY SEE THE HEAVIEST SNOWFALL EARLY WEDNESDAY BUT PERIODS OF HEAVY SNOWFALL WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE DAY WEDNESDAY. THE LOWER ELEVATIONS WILL SEE A TRANSITION TO MORE SHOWERY WEATHER WEDNESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. DURING THIS PERIOD...ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE ESPECIALLY IN THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE MOUNTAINS WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY BEFORE WINDING DOWN OVER THE SIERRA ON FRIDAY. IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY...RAINFALL AMOUNTS BETWEEN TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND THURSDAY ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM ONE HALF TO ONE INCH. AT THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS...TOTAL SNOWVALL AMOUNTS DURING THIS TIME COULD REACH A FOOT AND A HALF AT THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS WITH AS MUCH AS A FOOT OF SNOW EXPECTED AROUND THE 5000 FOOT LEVEL. THE COLDEST AIR MOVES INTO THE REGION WEDNESDAY NIGHT. DURING THIS TIME...SOME HIGHER FOOTHILL LOCATIONS COULD SEE A FEW INCHES OF SNOW. IN ADDITION TO THE RAIN AND SNOWFALL...NORTHERN CALIFORNIA CAN EXPECT A PERIOD OF GUSTY WINDS AS THE MAIN COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH THE REGION TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT. IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY...WINDSPEEDS OF 10 TO 20 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED WITH GUSTS TO 25 MPH. OVER THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS...WINDSPEEDS OVER THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS COULD REACH 50 MPH LATE TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. THE COMBINATION OF WINDS AND HEAVY SNOW WILL BRING WHITE OUT CONDITIONS AT TIMES. BE ALERT FOR CHANGING WEATHER THIS COMING WEEK FROM TUESDAY ONWARD. AT THE LOWER ELEVATIONS...THERE WILL BE PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN...ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS AND POSSIBLE HAIL. OVER THE MOUNTAINS...PERIODS OF HEAVY SNOW AND WIND WILL MAKE TRAVEL HAZARDOUS.