SALT LAKE CITY – The National Weather Service issued some winter weather warnings ahead of another storm that could cause more than one foot of snow in the Wasatch Mountains and northern Utah on Friday evening to Saturday.
Several inches of snow is also expected to fall in some of the region’s valleys and impact areas in central Utah.
Enclosures
The Utah Department of Transportation he said on Twitter shortly before 9 p.m., that 1-84 westbound closed on the Utah-Idaho border; The UDOT traffic website showed that the interstate reopened from 10 p.m. Drivers can find up-to-date traffic information available at udottraffic.utah.gov.
State Route 210 in Big Cottonwood Canyon will close on Saturday for uphill traffic at 12:30 p.m., and will be closed for downhill traffic at 1 a.m. for the UDOT avalanche and security check. Roads will reopen at 8 a.m. Saturday.
Laws of traction
Traction laws are in effect in both the Big Cottonwood and Little Cottonwood canyons in Salt Lake County starting at 7 p.m., Friday. Traction devices such as tires or snow chains are needed on all vehicles in both directions for state routes 210 and 190, according to UDOT.
All vehicles traveling on I-80 through Parley’s Canyon are necessary to have traction devices. Drivers heading east can stop and put chains on the right side of the road at mile point 129 and drivers heading west can place chains at mile point 146 on the right side, UDOT said on Twitter .
There are also laws on traction Sardine Canyon in Cache County, U.S. 91 in both directions, between mile 2 and mile 17. National Meteorological Service meteorologists said Friday that the storm would cause “dangerous trips” through higher mountain passes such as Logan Canyon .
The weather
Northern Utah and Wasatch Front
Heavy snowfall moves through the center and north of Wasatch Front until 10 p.m. Friday, the National Weather Service he said on Twitter. The cold front of the storm has reduced the temperature in the 1920s and, although the roads have remained wet, they could quickly freeze and drivers are urged to be careful, especially because “overpasses could be freeze in a hurry, ”the NWS said.
The latest storm is part of a system that is moving from the Pacific Northwest, according to KSL meteorologist Grant Weyman. Blizzards arrived in northern Utah and around the Wasatch Front on Friday morning in a smaller storm than would come later.
The strongest is expected on Friday night through Saturday. The winter weather warnings from the weather service, which were first issued on Thursday and updated on Friday, will take effect on Friday afternoon and run through Saturday night. A warning indicates that snow accumulations are expected to reach 10 to 20 inches in the Wasatch Mountains north and south of I-80 and in the western Uinta Mountains, with some “locally higher amounts” possible in some areas.
Weather alert: A cold front will bring mountain snow and light valleys this evening to the SAT. The biggest road snow threat along the Wasatch Front will be SLC in the north and on the banks. Be careful during the trip. For more information: https://t.co/4P1gO1U0Gg#utsnow#utwxpic.twitter.com/2wx3EgpwYk
– UDOT Traffic (@UDOTTRAFFIC) February 26, 2021
“Winter driving conditions can be expected on all routes with higher elevations, especially at the top of Cottonwood Canyons, I-80 near Parley`s Summit and Logan Pass Friday evening through Saturday,” he said. alert.
Possible gusts of wind could be associated with the storm, but the weather service removed a precaution over 25-degree negative wind warming in an update from its Friday.
Wasatch Mountain Valleys
A second winter weather warning was issued for the Wasatch Mountain Valleys (Heber City, Huntsville and Park City areas), which also went into effect Friday afternoon through Saturday evening. The weather service said Saturday morning the trip along the Wasatch front could be affected.
The agency predicts 3 to 6 inches of snow falling in these areas, with “locally higher” amounts in the Ogden Valley. The alert added that mountain valleys south of I-80 could receive 3 to 6 inches of snow; some parts of the Ogden Valley could receive more than 6 to 8 inches of snow by storm.
He The National Meteorological Service published an image showing the expected totals of snow for the storm on Sunday morning, which is approximately the time the storm will have already passed. In addition to the areas listed in the notice, cities such as Brigham City, Logan, Nephi, Ogden, Provo, Salt Lake City and Tooele are expected to receive 1 to 3 inches of snow.
Winter storm on the way! American snow begins overnight and increases in intensity and coverage on Friday, with snow falling at the bottom of the valley on Saturday. 8-14 “was expected in mtns with locally higher amts (i.e., in Cottonwoods); 6-8” north banks and 1-4 “valleys. #utwxpic.twitter.com/XyQckZbEJ4
– NWS Salt Lake City (@NWSSaltLakeCity) February 25, 2021
Central Utah
A third warning was issued Friday morning for higher elevation areas of central Utah, including places such as Cove Fort, Fish Lake, Koosharem and Scofield, which went into effect Friday at 8 p.m. lengthens most of Saturday. It is advised that some areas may receive 4 to 10 inches of snow.
“Occasional winter driving conditions can be expected, especially along U.S. 6, from Spanish Fork Canyon to north of Price and the highest peaks on I-70,” he said.
All three tips encourage motorists to “slow down and be careful while traveling.”
The storm is not expected to recover the state’s snow figure on average, but it is expected to at least help keep it moving forward. The Utah snow pack was at 77% of normal for this point of the year as of Friday morning, according to SNOTEL data.
The additional snow could also cause avalanche problems after the threat became less severe than last week. As of 8 a.m. Friday, most of Utah’s mountains had a “moderate” or “considerable” risk of avalanches, according to the Utah Avalanche Center. The danger of avalanche moved to “high” for the mountains near Logan.
Meanwhile, forecasts call for better weather around March. According to Weyman, temperatures along the Wasatch Front will return in the 1940s and even lower in the 1950s by mid-week.
At KSL Weather Center you can find complete forecasts of areas throughout Utah.