Winter storm Wednesday night into Friday morning will bring rain, heavy mountain snow, gusty winds and mountain travel impacts. Brief break expected during the day Friday. A second winter storm Friday night into Sunday will bring additional rain, heavy mountain snow, and mountain travel impacts. Also, low snow! There’s still time to get ready.

winter storm watch

Be Prepared

  • Have sufficient food and water for yourself and your pets to last for several days. Please bring your pets inside.
  • Pick up any prescription medication you may need before the storm hits.
  • Charge your electronic devices and check your flashlight and radio batteries.
  • Have repair supplies available.
  • Secure any outdoor furniture, breezy winds are likely with this storm.
  • Be aware of changing conditions and monitor your local media for weather alerts and updates.
  • Call 211 for people needing shelter.
  • If you are using firewood as a primary or backup heat source, make sure you have sufficient dry, seasoned wood available.
  • Gas up your vehicle.

Sandbag locations

Sand and sandbags at the county facility
Sand and sandbags at the county facility. Photo YubaNet

Sandbags are available throughout locations in the Foothills. Bring your own shovel, sand and bags are provided for free.

Nevada County

  • Next to the Nevada County Warehouse on the corner of Highway 49 and East Broad Street in Nevada City
  • Penn Valley Fire Protection District located at 10513 Spenceville Road in Penn Valley
  • North San Juan Community Hall located at 10057 Reservoir Street in North San Juan
  • Higgins Fire Station 21 located at 10106 Combie Road

Residents must bring their own shovel to fill the sandbags with sand. Sand bags are limited, Nevada County OES requests that residents only take what they plan to use for protection of their personal property.

Don’t forget to accomplish the following if possible

  • Clear rain gutters
  • Repair roof leaks
  • Cut away tree branches that could fall on your house (if there are any left)
  • Make sure exterior pipes are wrapped to avoid freeze damage, the very cold temperatures will last throughout the week

Safety tips from PG&E:

If outages occur:

  • Stay away from downed power lines. Treat all downed power lines as if they are energized and extremely dangerous. Keep yourself and others well away from them and immediately call 911, then notify PG&E’s 24-hour emergency and customer service line at 1-800-743-5002.
  • Candles pose a fire risk. Avoid using them during a power outage. If you must use candles, keep them away from drapes, lampshades and small children. Do not leave candles unattended.
  • If your power goes out, unplug or turn off electric appliances to avoid overloading circuits and fire hazards when power is restored. Simply leave a single lamp on to alert you when power returns. Turn your appliances back on one at a time when conditions return to normal.