Winter storm live updates: Hail falls in Palm Springs; Idyllwild receives 10 inches of snow

Desert dwellers on Wednesday are getting an encore to the weekend storm that resulted in rare blizzard warnings across Southern California. While that system mainly dumped snow in the surrounding mountains and brought high winds to the valley floor with little precipitation recorded here, this one is a soaker. Hello, March.

Between midnight and 2 p.m., Palm Springs International Airport had received 0.68 inches of rain, making it the wettest day in the city in nearly three years since Palm Springs received 0.94 inches on March 12, 2020.

• ICYMI: Winter storm results in rare avalanche above Palm Springs. Check out the photo

• Winter storm: Palm Springs sees hail on Wednesday; Idyllwild sees 10 inches of snow

Check back here for updated precipitation totals, road closures, event cancellations and other news of the winter storm.

Idyllwild gets 10 inches of snow

According to the National Weather Service - San Diego's 6:30 p.m. snow report, on Wednesday, Banning received 6 inches of snow, Idyllwild received 10 inches, and Big Bear City received "24-30 inches." Big Bear Summit, which has an elevation of 7,100-8,200 feet, received 31 inches.

Around 8 p.m., the same NWS office tweeted that, between Wednesday, Feb. 22 and Wednesday, March 1, the snow total at Lake Arrowhead was 99 inches.

— Niki Kottmann

Palm Springs gets .71 inches of rain, Desert Hot springs appears to get 'some snowflakes'

Mark Moede, a meterologist with the National Weather Service - San Diego said that as of 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Palm Springs had received .71 inches of rain, Thousand Palms received .27 inches and Thermal received .13 inches.

He also said that Desert Hot Springs, which had received .51 inches of rain as of 6:30 p.m., appeared to get some snowfall.

"We got a video from a person who says he's in Desert Hot Springs sent to us today around 3:30 p.m. and his comment was 'we actually had snow in Desert Hot Springs.' I'm playing the video right now and it sure is — that is snow," Moede said.

There still could be some precipitation as the storm exits east tonight, Moede said when asked about the forecast. The next couple days are going to be cool, though not as cold as it was today, and he said the forecast is overall looking "a little warmer, drier and lighter [when it comes to] wind."

— Niki Kottmann

Mt. Baldy area will remain closed until further notice

Angeles National Forest authorities announced on Twitter around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday that the Mt. Baldy area, "including the Mt. Baldy Resort and nearby popular areas for snow play," will remain closed until further notice due to the threat of avalanches.

Around 1:30 p.m., the same Twitter account reported that, due to major snowfall, "the Mt. Baldy Resort and nearby popular snowplay areas cannot be accessed due to a recent avalanche covering Mt. Baldy Road. Potential danger could last 24-48 more hours."

— Niki Kottmann

Joshua Tree National Park closed

Around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Joshua Tree National Park authorities announced on Twitter that the park was closed due to "inclement weather." No timetable for reopening the park was announced.

The park had noted earlier in the day that the National Weather Service had issued a wind advisory for the park through 4 a.m. Thursday. Winds 20 to 30 mph were expected, with gusts up to 50 mph. The wind was expected to reduce visibility due to blowing sand, and make driving difficult for high-profile vehicles like RVs.

Webcams in the park showed snow in the area of Belle Mountain.

— Julie Makinen

Congressional representatives urge Newsom to issue disaster declaration

U.S. Rep. Jay Obernolte, who represents much of San Bernardino County including the communities in the Big Bear Lake area, on Wednesday called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to issue a state disaster declaration in response to historic winter storms.

The official request for the governor to declare a State of Emergency for the mountain areas was signed by Reps. Ken Calvert, who represents the Coachella Valley and other parts of Riverside County; Kevin Kiley; Darrell Issa; Doug LaMalfa; Tom McClintock; David Valadao; Young Kim; Michelle Steel; John Duarte; and Mike Garcia.

"Over the past few days, the state has experienced an unprecedented surge of winter storms that have engulfed Southern California, spanning the San Bernardino, Sierra Nevada, and San Gabriel Mountains. The magnitude of these weather systems has placed a severe strain on local governments’ ability to swiftly respond and protect public health and safety," the members wrote to Newsom.

The members of Congress noted that the storms had "blocked roads, stranded or trapped residents and visitors, collapsed buildings, and left thousands of homes and businesses without electricity or access to critical lifesaving resources including fuel, medications, doctors, and even basic resources such as groceries."

The unincorporated town of Crestline was singled out, with representatives saying employees were struggling to reach the wastewater treatment facility.

The City of Big Bear Lake on Wednesday morning announced that all mountain highways (State Routes 38, 330, and 18) to and from Big Bear were closed. Caltrans is maintaining SR-18 via Lucerne to provide escorts with essential supplies.

"In order to ensure that these communities have all the resources they need to assure public health and safety, we ask you to make a statewide declaration of emergency that will allow assistance to be expedited to the affected areas."

Newsom did not immediately respond to the request.

— Julie Makinen

IID restores power to customers in Salton City

Power was fully restored on Tuesday evening for over a thousand Imperial Irrigation District customers who lost power following a wind storm a week ago, the Imperial Irrigation District said Wednesday.

Imperial Irrigation District fully restored electric service to all customers in the Salton City power outage area late Tuesday evening, transitioning residents from a generator to full IID power, according to a press release from the district. While relying on the generator, IID had asked customers to conserve power.

“The windstorm caused a loss of electrical service to over 1,200 IID energy customers. IID diligently pursued interim engineering solutions to restore power, integrating energy into the electric grid from a mobile generator for several days to pick up all but a few commercial customers in the Salton City area. The use of the interim power source was successful as newly restored customers in the area assisted in conserving energy during the course of operations,” IID said.

A Red Cross Community Resource Center established to assist those impacted by the power outages will close at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, but county staff “will remain on standby,” according to the release. Those affected are also encouraged to complete the county’s Power Outage Assistance Survey. 

“IID extends its deepest appreciation to all its customers for their assistance and patience as we worked to restore power,” said IID Energy Manager Jamie Asbury in the press release. “We want to especially thank the dedicated crews who have given it their all, along with the people and entities, such as the many agencies representing the County of Imperial, the Red Cross, and CalOES, as these responders were key in meeting customer needs.”

— Erin Rode

Hail falls in Palm Springs, Cathedral City

Hail fell in Palm Springs and Cathedral City shortly after 2 p.m. Wednesday, blanketing the ground in white after a morning of rainfall.

The National Weather Service issued a high wind warning for the Coachella Valley through 10 p.m. Wednesday, with winds of 25 to 35 mph expected and gusts up to 60 mph. The NWS warned trees could be damaged and travel for high-profile vehicles may be difficult.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service issued a Winter Storm Warning for the San Bernardino County mountains to last through midnight. The NWS said snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches was expected, at elevations as low as 1,500 feet. Wind gusts up to 70 mph were also forecast.

— Julie Makinen

Pacific Crest Trail hikers told to avoid San Jacintos

The first Pacific Crest Trail northbound thru-hikers of the year are starting their 2,650-mile journey from the trail's southern terminus along the Mexican border today - but the hikers are being warned to avoid the San Jacinto Mountains altogether following recent snowfall.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit told PCT hikers to skip the San Jacinto Mountains entirely, instead departing the trail at Paradise Valley Cafe along Highway 74 and meeting up with it again at the I-10 freeway in Cabazon.

"Due to dangerous conditions, it is advised to skip this entire section. If you choose to hike north be prepared to turn around, have a Plan B, or hike later after the snow melts and conditions improve. Don't put yourself or others at risk because you made a bad decision," wrote Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit.

Mt. San Jacinto State Park also announced Wednesday that backcountry trails within the state park "have been closed until further notice," while the immediate area of long Valley remains open "for now."

― Erin Rode

Palm Springs announcing road closures

Palm Springs started announcing road closures, a common occurrence anytime much rain falls in the city, at about 8:30 a.m. The first stretch of road to close was North Indian Canyon Drive through the wash between Sunrise Parkway and Palm Springs Station Road. Other roads connecting the city to the interstate, including Gene Autry Trail and Vista Chin. However, flooding had reduced the latter to one open lane in each direction.

―Paul Albani-Burgio

Roads, ski resorts around Big Bear closed Wednesday during state of emergency

Highways 18, 30 and 330 are closed to the public to and from Big Bear during an ongoing state of emergency in the San Bernardino Mountains.

Local ski resorts have also suspended operations.

Bear Mountain, Snow Summit and Snow Valley ski resorts are closed Wednesday due to high winds and extreme winter conditions, including another 18 to 28 inches of snow in the last 24 hours.

“Please avoid traveling to the mountains until the roads have been properly cleared and local agencies have verified they are safe for travel," the resorts’ operator wrote in an email.

― Jonathan Horwitz

Rain, snow and high winds in Palm Springs area, surrounding mountains

Rain started falling in Palm Springs a little after midnight Wednesday and is expected to continue for much of the day, according to the National Weather Service. Total precipitation could vary considerably across the valley with anywhere from a few hundredths of an inch to about a quarter of an inch expected, National Weather Service meteorologist Philip Gonsalves said. He added that the rain is expected to continue for much the day before tapering off in the evening and ending entirely by around midnight.

By 8 a.m, Thousand Palms recorded 0.31 of an inch of precipitation and 0.54 inch had fallen at Palm Springs International Airport.

The San Jacinto Mountains, meanwhile, are expected to add more snow to the already impressive accumulation totals from the past few days. Gonsalves said areas above 5,500 feet could see 1 to 2 feet of new snow while areas above 4,000 feet will likely see around 3 inches. Even mountain areas below 3,000 feet could see a little snow, Gonsalves said.

Both the Coachella Valley and surrounding mountains will continue to see high winds from the storm, with gusts of 35 to 45 ― maybe up to 65 mph ― expected in both areas.

Those winds are expected to calm by Wednesday night, however, with highs in the 60s, clear skies and little to no wind forecasted for the rest of the week.

― Paul Albani-Burgio, Matt Solinsky

To the rooftops: Staggering snowfall in mountains across California

Fresh snow fell in the California mountains on Wednesday, adding to a staggering total that has blocked roads, stranded visitors for days, and left thousands of homes and businesses in the cold without electricity.

The Sierra Nevada range in the north and Southern California mountains were under blizzard warnings for a storm overnight into early Wednesday that snowed in some areas, dumped rain in others and chilled much of the state.

The heavy snow was expected to end Wednesday afternoon after an additional 1 to 2 feet falls in the region, according to the National Weather Service.

Record cold was possible, with lows down to 28 degrees, and the National Weather Service issued freeze and frost warnings into early Wednesday in the San Francisco Bay Area and elsewhere.

The University of California, Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Laboratory near Donner Pass reported that nearly 41.7 feet has fallen since October, more than in any snow year since 1970 and second only to the record of 66.7 feet in 1952.

Mammoth Lakes, traditionally one of the snowiest places in California, had nearly 4 feet of snow over the past three days. Snow drifts were taller than houses, and crews worked around the clock to keep roads and sidewalks clear.

― The Associated Press

Rain causes sink holes on LA County roads

Two sinkholes caused by the heavy rains have led to closures on Wednesday on roads in Los Angeles County.

A SigAlert has been issued in downtown Los Angeles on the northbound Santa Ana (101) Freeway for a sinkhole in the right lane near Spring Street. Traffic is reportedly backed up to Fourth Street.

Another sinkhole is in the 1200 block of Elden Avenue in the Pico-Union neighborhood. It is about 3 feet wide and “probably about 10 feet deep and open up on the inside,” Sgt. Richard Boyd of the Los Angeles Police Department told KTLA.

“Definitely not a situation that we’re going to let people come near or drive up to,” Boyd said.

―City News Service

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Winter storm live updates: Rain, hail hit Palm Springs