New Year, New Storms: Winter storms begin to hit the North Coast

It feels like a rerun of last year with winter storm systems battering the North Coast region. From wind storms, to high surf advisories, and even snow up in Trinity County.

“Right now, we’re already seeing the snow levels fall across the interior. So anyone that’s traveling should be starting to get prepared. You know, it is winter. We’re in January. Keep those chains in your car, be ready to put them on if you need to,” National Weather Service of Eureka meteorologist Ryan Aylward said.

Snow is expected in the Trinity County this weekend, with one to two inches in Trinity Center and up to 6 to 8 inches in Scott Mountain Pass.

Wind advisories were also in effect in those area, blowing gusts up to 50 miles per hour. Strong winds can make driving an absolute hassle, both in areas high and low.

“We really encourage people to limit travel during conditions where we do have wind advisories and especially with a high wind warning,” Aylward said.

High wind warnings can be issued if sustained wind speeds reach between 40 to 58 miles per hour.

“Think of last year when we had the big wind storm, that sort of event. If we do issue a high wind warning, think about just not traveling at all. Don’t travel where there are large trees around and that’s everywhere around here,” Aylward said. “We also have to be ready for power outages in those citations because there’s probably going to be in those areas.”

That is do to high winds bring down large trees and downed power lines, much like the power outages that occurred in 2019 after a series of storms. And being prepared for an outage is key to getting through theses winter months.

“If you have a generator, make sure that you have it fueled and ready to go. Keep that generator outside, don’t turn it on inside. Have lots of batteries on hand and flashlights ready to go. Canned good, having a good storage of that is really important,” Aylward said. “Around here, power outages can last for days and for many places in the interior, can last for weeks. Being prepared for something that is a long lasting event is really important.”