Those rain drops around Carson City this morning may turn into snow flakes, with the potential for some of them to stick, according to the National Weather Service. A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect until noon today for much of the valley region including Carson City, Douglas County and Virginia City.
According to the weather service, a band of moderate to heavy snow will affect the Reno and Sparks areas through noon. Lighter bands will affect areas near and south of Highway 50 this morning.
Snow Accumulations of up to 3 inches is possible on the valley floor north of Highway 50 with 2 to 5 inches above 5000 feet. Locally up to 8 inches in the foothills west of Highway 395 and near Virginia City. South of Highway 50 up to 2 inches.
The band of heavy snow could produce rapid drops in visibility with snowfall rates up to 2 inches per hour at times.
Travel delays are likely across the Sierra Front north of Highway 50 especially above 5,000 feet. Roads may also become slick in lower elevations this morning. Leave extra space between vehicles since it takes longer to stop on slick roadways.
Meanwhile, a Flood Warning remains in effect until 11:30 a.m.
For western Nevada, the weather service advises there will be steady precipitation for most of the day along Highway 395, with areas of lighter rain and snow extending into west central Nevada mainly north of Highway 50.
For most lower valleys such as Carson Valley and Carson City, a rain-snow mix will continue will limited snow accumulations, while foothill locations above 5,000 feet and around Virginia City could see a few inches of snow accumulate. A more significant hazard may be wet pavement freezing overnight as temperatures drop further, with a light coating of snow covering the ice, according to the weather service.
Otherwise from Wednesday and Thursday, the coldest air so far this month will spread across the region, with highs mainly in the 30s to lower 40s in lower elevations and below 30 near the Sierra. Weak disturbances within the cold west-northwest flow aloft could keep the risk of light snow showers going for both days especially north of I-80, around the Tahoe basin, and in eastern portions of Pershing and Churchill counties.
