Fierce winter storm forces Yosemite to close until March
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK -- Yosemite National Park is closed due to severe winter conditions, the National Park Service announced Saturday.
The park will be closed to the public until Wednesday, March 1, park officials said.
After days of fierce winds, toppled trees and downed wires, more than 120,000 California utility customers remained without electricity, according to PowerOutage.us. And Interstate 5 remained closed through the mountains north of Los Angeles due to heavy snow and ice in Tejon Pass.
UPDATE: Snow shuts down Yosemite National Park indefinitely
The Weather Prediction Center of the National Weather Service forecast heavy snow over the Sierra Nevada through the weekend.
An avalanche warning was issued for the backcountry around Lake Tahoe. Nearly 2 feet of new snow had fallen by Friday and up to another 5 feet was expected when another storm moves in with the potential for gale-force winds and high-intensity flurries Sunday, the weather service said.
CONTINUING COVERAGE: Historic storm pummels Southern California
