Interstate 80 reopens in the Sierra after atmospheric river, chain controls dropped
NYACK – Chain controls, interstate closures and flooded roads were an obstacle for drivers Wednesday morning as significant wet weather rolled into Northern California.
Heavy rain pummeled the region through Tuesday night as an atmospheric river moved in. A Flood Advisory for Sacramento, Solano, Yolo and Placer counties remains in place until 3 a.m. Wednesday. Much of San Joaquin County and parts of Stanislaus County remained on a flood watch late Tuesday night.
A wind advisory was also in effect for much of the day for the Sacramento Valley and northern San Joaquin Valley, with wind gusts of up to 45 mph recorded.
Road closures in and near Sacramento County
The National Weather Service had reported flooding at various locations in and near Sacramento County throughout the day.
In the Sloughhouse area, Kiefer Boulevard was closed from Jackson Road to the Kiefer landfill due to afternoon flooding. A bit further east in Rancho Murieta, Deer Creek was overflowing onto Scott Road, causing a closure of Scott Road between Boys Ranch and Latrobe roads.
The California Highway Patrol's (CHP) South Sacramento division said southbound Interstate 5 south of Sutterville Road had flooding in the number 1 lane while northbound Highway 99 at Broadway had flooding in its number 1 lane.
Further south in San Joaquin County, both southbound Interstate 5 and southbound Highway 99 experienced closures Tuesday night due to what the CHP called major flooding. I-5's multi-lane closure was at Benjamin Holt Drive in Stockton while 99 was fully closed near Turner Road in the Lodi area.
Up north in Placer County, Placer Road in the Sheridan area was closed between Riosa and Brewer roads. Southwest in Solano County, the NWS reported flooding along Pitt School Road near Interstate 80.
Also in Placer County, in Auburn, a large tree fell and took power lines down with it along Auburn Folsom Road. The CHP Auburn said a driver crashed into the fallen tree but was not hurt.
Auburn Folsom Road was closed in both directions near Powerhouse Road.
Sierra chain controls
For the high country, a Winter Storm Warning went into effect Monday and will be in place through Wednesday. People were being discouraged from mountain travel during this period.
Chain controls were lifted on Interstate 80 between Kingvale and Truckee Wednesday afternoon. Multiple crashes and snow had I-80 closed eastbound from Nyack to Truckee for a brief time.
Westbound I-80 traffic was also closed from the Nevada State Line to west of Kingvale due to snow.
California Highway Patrol announced just after 7 a.m. that both directions of I-80 had reopened.
Highway 50 also had chain controls from Twin Bridges to Meyers, but those were lifted by Wednesday afternoon.
You can find up-to-date road conditions from Caltrans online.
