Spinouts and white out conditions shutdown I-80 Saturday afternoon
SIERRA — Heavy snowfall in the Sierra Mountains on Saturday forced many drivers to change their plans.
I-80 was closed near Donner summit as Caltrans officials anticipated worsening conditions.
Near white-out conditions made traveling dangerous. The rain turned to snow at about 4,500 feet, just north of Dutch Flat, with near white-out conditions making travel difficult.
In the Tahoe Basin, ski lifts could be seen swinging due to wind blowing up to 80 mph.
Truck drivers like Polli Hensley were forced to wait out the storm at the Nyack rest stop.
"It's nasty out, and now they closed the road, and I'm parked and can't get over the hill," Hensley said.
Multiple spinouts and white-out conditions forced CHP to close eastbound lanes at Kingvale and westbound lanes at the Nevada State Line.
Renaldo and his family tried to drive over the summit to Reno, but they changed their plans because their car wasn't equipped with four-wheel drive.
"We'll probably have to go back to Sacramento or Grass Valley."
The snow lightened in the evening in Nyack, but Caltrans expects conditions to worsen overnight.
With more snow on the way, officials are asking drivers to be cautious as they travel.