Strong winds, snow to hit area mountains

Flurries along Highway 330 forced Caltrans to require chains Tuesday near Snow Valley

Gusty winds could make travel difficult for trucks in Southern California and push in a new round of snow showers in the San Bernardino Mountains, the National Weather Service said.

Winds from the northeast at 20 to 35 mph with gusts to 60 mph are expected through this afternoon above Porter Ranch and Chatsworth in Los Angeles County, the weather service said.

And winds of 20 to 25 mph, accompanied by gusts of up to 70 mph, were forecast through this afternoon for inland Orange County and the Inland Empire, particularly the San Bernardino County mountains and foothills, said Samantha Connolly, a weather service meteorologist. That includes the truck-heavy 15 Freeway in the Cajon Pass.

Tuesday, large snowflakes fell in the San Bernardino Mountains with about a quarter-inch of accumulation, Connolly said. There was enough snow that Caltrans required chains on vehicle tires.

“We’re looking at a very similar situation Thursday through Friday morning. Any accumulation will be less than an inch,” Connolly said.

Chain controls were also in effect Tuesday for Highway 2 (Angeles Crest Highway) in the Angeles National Forest, where a slight chance of snow was forecast for Thursday.

Elsewhere, mostly sunny skies were forecast for the remainder of the week, outside of about a 20% chance of rain late Thursday in the lower elevations.

Updates on road conditions are available on the Caltrans Quickmap at quickmap.dot. ca.gov and on Twitter at @Caltrans8.

PHOTOS BY WILL LESTER — STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER A Caltrans employee directs a motorist to chain up at a mandatory check point along Highway 330 west of Snow Valley on Tuesday.

Rodney Mitchell, from Los Angeles, lays out his snow chains at a mandatory chain up area along Highway 330 west of Snow Valley on Tuesday. A brief storm moved through area dropping only a quarter inch of snow. Chain restrictions were lifted on Hwy 330 at approximately 11:30 a.m.