The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for the Southern California Mountains. Snow is expected to begin Monday and continue through Tuesday. NWS estimates a total of 4 to 9 inches over the two-day period.
Below is a summary of the NWS message issued at 3 a.m., this morning, Dec. 12.
...HEAVY SNOWFALL IN THE MOUNTAINS THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY AND IN THE UPPER DESERTS LATE TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING...
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAINS-RIVERSIDE COUNTY MOUNTAINS-SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS-
INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...ANGELUS OAKS...BALDWIN LAKE...BARTON FLATS...BIG BEAR CITY...BIG BEAR LAKE...FAWNSKIN...
FOREST FALLS...LAKE ARROWHEAD...MOUNT BALDY...RUNNING SPRINGS...TWIN PEAKS...WRIGHTWOOD...IDYLLWILD...PINE COVE...CUYAMACA...MOUNT LAGUNA...RANCHITA
...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING
TO 2 PM PST TUESDAY ABOVE 5000 FEET...
* ELEVATION: ABOVE 5000 FEET.
* SNOW LEVELS: SNOW LEVELS NEAR 4000 TO 4500 FEET...EXCEPT LOWERING TO 3000 TO 3500 FEET LATE TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING FOR THE SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAINS.
* LOCATION: THE GREATEST POTENTIAL FOR LOCALLY HEAVY SNOWFALL IS IN THE SAN BERNARDINO MOUNTAINS ABOVE 6000 FEET. SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION IS EXPECTED IN ALL MOUNTAINS DOWN TO 5000 FEET WITH A FEW INCHES POSSIBLE DOWN TO 4000 TO 4500 FEET.
* SNOW ACCUMULATIONS: SNOWFALL WILL RANGE FROM A FEW INCHES DOWN TO 4000 TO 4500 FEET
...TO 12 TO 18 INCHES ABOVE 6000 FEET IN THE SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAINS
...AND 6 TO 10 INCHES ABOVE 6000 FEET IN THE MOUNTAINS OF RIVERSIDE AND SAN DIEGO COUNTIES.
* TIMING: MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW WILL DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT...TAPERING TO SCATTERED
SNOW SHOWERS ON TUESDAY BUT CONTINUING THROUGH THE DAY.
* VISIBILITY: WILL BE LOCALLY REDUCED TO ONE QUARTER MILE OR LESS
FROM FOG AND DURING PERIODS OF HEAVY SNOW.
* IMPACTS: RESIDENTS AND TRAVELERS INTO HIGHER ELEVATIONS IN THE MOUNTAINS SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR HAZARDOUS WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS AND POSSIBLE ROAD CLOSURES. IF POSSIBLE...CARRY CHAINS AND TAKE EXTRA FOOD AND CLOTHING. TRAVEL ON INTERSTATE 15 THROUGH THE CAJON PASS AND ACROSS THE HIGH DESERT COULD BE IMPACTED...ESPECIALLY LATE TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING.