SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Forecasters warned of dangerous driving conditions through the mountains where a winter storm is expected bring snow and much-needed rain to Northern California on Sunday evening.
The storm could drop up to 1 1/4 inches of rain in the foothills, and up to 2 feet of snow in higher elevations of the northern Sierra Nevada, the National Weather Service office in Sacramento said.
Temperatures could drop to close to freezing in interior regions. The Santa Clara County said it would open a warming shelter Sunday to encourage homeless people to protect themselves against hypothermia.
The winter storm warning will be in effect until 5 p.m. Monday.
California’s overall rain and snow totals have been running well below average because of a largely dry winter that persisted through February.
A key indicator of water supplies will come with a Sierra snow survey on April 1, the date when the snowpack is normally the deepest and has the highest water content.
