Interstate 5 Linking Northern California To Oregon Reopens Following Blizzard – CBS San Francisco

REDDING (AP) – A section of a major northern California freeway reopened Thursday afternoon after nearly 24-hour lockdown due to blizzards as the most recent consecutive storms broke through, authorities said.

Traffic on a section of Interstate 5 north of the city of Redding resumed around 1 p.m., said Haleigh Pike, a California Department of Transportation spokesman. Redding is about 200 miles north of San Francisco.

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The lanes to the north were closed on Wednesday around 1:20 p.m. when vehicles got stuck. The south side was closed about an hour later.

Winter weather warnings and advisories expired late Thursday morning, but it took time to reopen as highway and utility personnel had to survey the lane, remove dangerous trees and restore power lines.

Blizzard conditions on Interstate 5 north of Redding, December 15, 2021. (Caltrans District 2 / Twitter)

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South of San Francisco, a 40-mile stretch of scenic Highway 1 in the Big Sur area reopened Wednesday night after storm damage was repaired.

This week’s storms have poured large amounts of snow into the mountains of the drought-stricken mountains of California, drenching lower elevations with heavy rain.

California highway authorities on Thursday announced the seasonal closure of several key passes through the Sierra Nevada and sections of other federal highways in the mountains due to snow accumulation. The routes will remain closed until the snow and debris are cleared and repairs are carried out in spring.

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