Rain continues to soak valley

Thursday, Jan. 11, 2001 | 11:32 a.m.

SUN STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

A storm roaring through California overnight began drenching the Las Vegas Valley early this morning, creating slick roads that caused a rash of fender benders, National Weather Service forecasters said.

"We are going to be seeing rain with possibly heavy showers or even thunderstorms in Las Vegas until mid- or late afternoon," chief meteorologist Larry Jensen said.

The National Weather Service issued a small stream and urban flood advisory at 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. At least a half-inch of rain was expected to fall in the valley.

By 8 a.m. a foot of snow had fallen on Mount Charleston, weather service meteorologist Jim Harrison said. More snow was expected in the Spring Mountains and possibly into the western suburbs of Las Vegas through Friday.

About 1,500 Nevada Power Co. customers were without electricity this morning, company spokeswoman Sonya Headen said.

The weather-related problems included 750 residents of Green Valley, east of Kelso Dunes Avenue and north of Warm Springs Road, she said. A fire on a power pole caused the outage that lasted about half an hour, she said.

An additional 800 customers, mostly businesses, were blacked out on Fremont Street south to Charleston Boulevard, Headen said. The power was still out at 10 a.m.

McCarran International Airport reported no flight delays, but jets from Los Angeles and San Francisco were delayed due to California's weather, Hilarie Grey, the airport's public affairs manager, said.

Light rain could continue through the evening, then is expected to taper off until Friday, Jensen said.

As colder air behind the storm clouds punches Southern Nevada from the northwest, more showers are predicted for Friday and could bring snow down to the 3,000-foot level, dusting Summerlin and the northwest valley, Jensen said.

With a storm as large as this one, Jensen said, it is possible thunderstorms could rumble into Southern Nevada through Friday.

Forecasts for Saturday and Sunday call for drier weather with highs in the 40s and lows from the 30s to the lower 40s. Another chance of rain and snow showers in Southern Nevada arrives on Sunday through Monday.

In Reno, the first winter storm of the year dumped up to 3 feet of snow at the higher elevations in the Sierra Nevada, making driving treacherous over the mountain passes.

A winter storm warning for the Lake Tahoe region remained in effect Thursday. The National Weather Service said snow, possibly heavy at times, would continue throughout the day, bringing an additional 5-10 inches to areas above 7,000 feet.

The wet storm that pushed in from the Pacific on Wednesday left about 8 inches around Lake Tahoe overnight. Forecasters said another 3-6 inches was possible before the system pushed out of the region by Friday.

In Southern California the storm tore a barge from its moorings in Los Angeles Harbor, stranded tourists on Alcatraz Island and snarled traffic up and down the state.

More than 5 inches of rain had fallen in some areas by early Thursday and flash flood warnings were in effect for southern Los Angeles and Ventura counties. More than 20,000 customers in Los Angeles lost power.

"It's bad, and it's not getting any better," said Wendy Yancy, a spokeswoman for the Department of Water and Power.

The storm moved down the coast from Northern California throughout the day Wednesday, invading the Los Angeles basin in midafternoon. The storm was expected to weaken and move inland around midday Friday.

"You have to go back three years to the winter when El Nino hit to find a storm of this magnitude," National Weather Service meteorologist Mark Moede said. "This is a very powerful storm."

Forecasters reported waves as high as 35 feet and emergency crews used sandbags to help residents protect their homes in the rain. More than 4 inches fell on the Santa Barbara County coast and as much as 5 inches on parts of Ventura County.

Snow forced the California Highway Patrol to close the Grapevine pass early Thursday and escort drivers through in small groups. Rain-slicked roads elsewhere made life miserable for drivers.

Waves tore at a dock at a Bay Area tourist favorite, Alcatraz Island, stranding more than 200 visitors at the former prison for more than three hours.

More than 39,000 Pacific Gas & Electric customers temporarily lost power in Marin County, north of San Francisco.