logo scratches on >> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions, this is abc 7 news. >> legit snow, not like a little dusting, but legit snow. >> you heard him. it is a bay area snow day, a rare storm in the valley, east bay hills, and the santa cruz mountains. those cold temperatures are here to stay. good evening. i'm ama daetz. dan: and i'm dan ashley. people are welcoming the snow with a sense of wonder. obviously the coal did not keep them away. ama: the big question is, how long will this last? let's get right to abc 7 meteorologist sandhya patel. sandhya: no, we are not looking

at blue canyon, not looking at lake tahoe, this is mount tam. if you hike up there, this is something you do not see all the time. this is definitely a snow-covered ground. taking a look at live doppler 7 a while it is quiet at this hour, there are a few showers showing up. as we pan around other parts of the bay area, mount hamilton has been seeing these snow showers over the last few hours, and then right over the ultima pass, same thing with the oakwood, brentwood area, watch out, there are still some slippery spots. widening out the picture, this is a light level one storm. the area of the coast will pass along the coast. we go hour-by-hour, as big as a little bit closer, we will see wraparound moisture, which means snow and rain began to increase right around 2:00, 3:00 in the morning. as you head toward the 5:00 a.m.

hour, we see it picking up one more time before this system win ds down. snow totals, this is at the observatory, six inches, st. helena, eight inches, even boulder creek getting two inches of snow. rainfall totals have been pretty impressive with the thunderstorms and the hail last night, got some downpours, over one inch of snow in san francisco, san jose, concord. i will be back with a full look at the weekend forecast, which includes more rain. ama: thank you. dan: we have team coverage for our crews spread around the bay area, tracking every angle for you, the snow, the wind, even the hail. ama: we start with abc 7 news reporter cornell barnard. you saw a lot of snow today. cornell: did we ever, ama and da n? check it out. it is a little mind blowing, because you have to remember,

this is wine country, but so much snow all around, and the snow is really sticking. it is what enough, in fact, to build a solid, decent snowball. more like a boulder, but you get the idea. all of the snow has brought road closures, power outages, plus you know, a lot of family fun, too. amanda lee and her kids from santa rosa never dreamed they would be sledding in one country come of it is happening. and linda: -- amanda: it is fun so far. cornell: check out all of this napa valley snow, more than enough are the same family to have a opera snowball fight. amanda: it worked out. cornell: snow is falling here, where it has snowed before but never like this. >> that's for sure. there's a lot of trees down. cornell: brian was buying a chainsaw to remove toppled trees by his house. by midday, six inches to nine

inches of snow has fallen. no snow clouds around here, but this backhoe was getting the job done, clearing a parking lot. at times, driving was too dangerous. that is why zach grabbed his skis for a quick run into town. >> just come down to town on the skis. [laughs] i've never seen this before, in five years of living up here. cornell: check out the snow-covered vineyards. a drive-through wine country look more like a trip through tahoe. generators were keeping the lights on in the fire department after a widespread power outage, which lasted about nine hours. >> but the concern is for restaurants here, you know, if there powers out very long, then their cold food warms up, and they are not allowed to use that. cornell: roadblocks were up on highway 29, where the rotors more than a foot of snow fell on mount st. helena overnight.

>> we just came up for the weekend, and we were psyched to see snow, but they are telling you you can't go. cornell: you know, caltrans says highway 29 could be close through the weekend because of down power lines and trees. locals around here say it has been decades since they have seen this much snow. i grew up in the bay area, and i would have to agree. anyway, it is time to build a snowman or have a snowball fight, take your pick. we are live in napa county tonight, i'm cornell barnard, abc 7 news. ama: all right, thank you, cornell. highway 17 in the santa cruz mountains is back open after a closure that lasted most of the day. it stretched in both directions from bear creek road to summit road. the closure down trees. abc 7 news reporter dustin dorsey has more on the snow and

they unpacked -- the impacts. dustin: i'm jealous of cornell, because for some of us making it up to see the snow, we were unable to. the familiar hum of traffic can be heard right now, but earlier today, it was eerily quiet when the highway was shut down. a near picture-perfect scene of white, a great site from afar, but the problem is, no one could get any closer to it it highway 17 was closed due to wintry conditions. southbound at bear creek road in northbound at granite road. >> we are responding to multiple trees down in the roadway, two cars stuck on the side of the road, and to down power poles, which are going across all four lanes of the roadway. uncommon. southbound was close for an entire day last month, but residents say this time is

different -- >> this may be one of the worst. >> it has never been like this. >> i have been here for 23 years, and this is the first time it has been a ghost town like this. dustin:dustin: just to be turned back around. anthony lives nearby and was on his way to work in san jose, but he was not sure if you would be able to make it back home later. >> put enough money in my pocket and everything, if i have got to stay downtown and get a hotel, so be it. but with four-wheel drive and everything, i don't know why they are shutting everybody down. not just the snow on the ground, there were at least 14 trees down on highway. these tickers show hazardous conditions in the santa cruz mountains. this video was shot before the closure, showing slushy and dangerous driving conditions chp officer john mae says if you are on a road like this slow down to avoid a spin out. >> make sure you are not reactive. don't make any sudden turn movements. allow your foot to come off of that acceleration pedal, and

slowly apply the brakes until you come to a complete stop. dustin: until roadways open up, things will remain slow on 17, and residents say it will be slow for them as well. >> that's why you have to be self-contained, have your own coffee, food, canned food, talking about what we will make for lunch and dinner. we have canned foods, ravioli. we will make do. dustin: officially, everything opened up here along highway 17 just after 3:00, but there are some side roads that are still closed, so make sure to be aware if you are heading up to the santa cruz mountains. for now, live it highway 17, dustin dorsey, abc 7 news. dan: dustin, thank you. the snow led to main road closures and san mateo county as well could some of the county's highest elevations were the most popular for people to search for snow. abc 7 news reporter zach fuentes is live on skyline boulevard in san mateo county with the story there.

zach? zach: yesterday, so much of the snow i was reporting on was sticking to the ground, not accumulating could hear, it is a different story. these kids have claus the snowman. there were hazardous road conditions because of the snow for the most part, everyone here has been having an awesome time. snow like this is a site you so rarely get to see in the bay area, so rare that locals wanting to sled down a hill had to improvise using boards meant for the ocean. this 2.5-year-old not knowing what to make of his first time in the snow. he eventually warmed up to i but the temperatures turned it to, leaving just enough -- sh, leaving just enough time to enjoy it. >> then we get to go home and have hot cocoa and enjoy the day. the best of both worlds, snow,

no snow. [laughs] zach: some like this undergrad from michigan shocked to see that this snow followed him here. >> we came and said there was no way we would see snow and we saw snow. zach: though mostly fun and games, it did not come without hick up speed we came across several broken trees, downed branches, and -- without hiccups. we came across several broken trees, downed branches and power lines. >> it was crazy. we thought we would get locked up there. zach: caltrans wanting those encountering conditions like these to drive safe. >> it is such beautiful snow, but we have to be mindful and be safe when we are out there on the roadways, something attention to the roads, patient and the signs, and use caution. zach: in the meantime, crews have been working steadily to keep safe in the weather. >> out on the highways now, doing the best they can on the roadways as well as clearing any ice and snow, various areas.

zach: right now, taking in as much of the snow that they can while they can. >> we are going to look around and look at the scenery. zach: all right, coming back to you live right now in san mateo county, you see the abc 7 snowman, that photographer jean smith put together, hopefully he stays together for a while. caltrans really urges everyone to check their quick map app to check on the road conditions to make sure you get out here safely and of course, drive safe, pay attention to all the road signs. for now, live in san mateo county, zach fuentes, abc 7 news. ama: thank you. in the east bay, good snow around midnight, and we saw some good snow people. coming up on abc 7 news at five: 30, reporter suzanne phan will show us what is happening around camden park. here's a live look at pg&e's power outages map.

nearly 13,000 bay area customers do not have electricity to the majority of those residences and businesses are located in the north bay and south bay. dan: our team coverage of the storm continues next. ama: that is right, from animals in the wild, everyone is excited. dan: also ahead here, back for another big performance, rihanna is set to take the stage again in just a few weeks on a huge stage. stay with us. abc 7 news

ama: last nights's storm brought heavy rain, hail, storm to the bay area. here in san francisco, lightning strikes happened multiple times throughout the night. the strong weather does continue tonight. dan: from that picture to countless others, abc 7 news viewers like you are helping tell the story of this historic weather day. ama: abc 7 news anchor dion lim

is here with other images. dion: along with challenges of severe weather, we found pentland -- plenty people severe snow appeared as snow transformed the bay area landscape from oakland's piedmont hills to snowcapped peaks of mount tam, amateur photographers like sean welch rushed over to get this shot and said a lot of people were out, excited about this rare site. we also heard the excitement over the rare snowstorm in calistoga. and saw its effects on mount cobb in lake county, where michelle's family has a lot of shoveling to do. tom went in search of snow and share this video along grizzly peak road -- >> go for it! dion: tammy's husband to drive but to stand in santa

cruz mountains, where roads and the neighborhoods are closed. >> oh. dion: nyla showed this video napa county, the moment power went out at about 11:00 last night. despite the downed power lines and tree branches, which brought some difficulty with their car, the family still managed to build a snowman pewter according to 10-year-old alyssa leo's mom, they love their snow day in the santa cruz mountains. perhaps the greatest of them all, a group of athletes who never miss their weekly runs from mill. >> them are ultra runner distance athletes, and they started predawn with headlamps on, getting just when it was getting light. dion: no matter where you live in the bay area, there seems to be one common vm -- >> it is a once in a decade kind of thing, so you just have to

play hooky from work in the morning a little bit or get up a little early and just have fun with that, because these conditions do not show up all the time. dion: you hear tha permission to play hooky the next time it snows could by the way, that woman and that running video is known as queen of the tam, 16 summits in 34 hours, so needless to say, dan and ama, a little snub did not get in her way today. --snow did not get in her way today. dan: what snow, dion? wherever you live, download the abc 7 bay area out. stay here with us. abc 7 news

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dan: the storm hitting us is also pounding southern california. this is video today from burbank, where heavy rain flooded local streets near the airpcameras spotted one person o had to pick up.

the bike and carry it out of the water. ama: wow. expect slow going heading up to tahoe. 80 is back open after being shut down this morning because of white out conditions. traffic is being metered eastbound. plus of snow in the central sierra, too, highway 120 heading toward yosemite. snow was falling pretty good around noon time. it sure does change if you are heading anywhere above 1500 feet. and some north bay residents did not even need to head to tahoe today. this was the scene in cloverdale. a park packed with people enjoying a snow day. there was letting, snowball fights, and even dogs enjoying the snow. dan: it is so incredibly rare at these elevations, and really fun to see, actually. ama: you know, it is a nice treat every now and then. dan: and of course, it does not hurt the drought situation. ama: abc 7 news meteorologist sandhya patel has more on whether this is hanging around any longer. sandhya: we will get more of

this wintry mix, ama and dan, and then we will switch things up. this has been a historic event, as you guys have been mentioning, snow here in the bay area, the amount that we saw, how low the elevation was. i mean, snow reports between 700 and 1000 feet, but there were lower reports as well, talking about 200 feet to 400 feet. now we are taking a look at live doppler 7 right here on brentwood, cellars avenue, we are seeing a few showers. temperatures have been low, so cold today, well below average by 10 degrees to 15 degrees. right now, you are in the 40's and 50's. you can see that there is plenty of snow on the ground. it is still snowing. chain controls right now leading up to tahoe hold off on traveling. you can see it is still coming down across this region. winter storm warning until 4:00 a.m. saturday, which is tomorrow. we are looking at 8 to 20 inches , but you can see several inches

above 3000 feet, with the heavy snow, difficult to impossible to travel. . beautiful view from our emeryville camera. you are probably looking outside and thinking, "what wintry mix?" you still have the wintry mix in the forecast through tomorrow morning. cold tomorrow with warnings and advisories early in the day, rain sunday with light snow on the peaks above 2500 feet. we are not excepting a repeat of what we just experience, but we will see some showers on our exclusive abc 7 storm impact scale, scattered showers, we are talking about still in isolated thunder chance or you go hour-by-hour come and at 10:00 tonight, mount hamilton, you start to see some snow. definitely some showers could we have been seeing that, and as we go toward 4:00 a.m., this is where we will see the whites productivity. more scattered in nature by 8:00 a.m. and done by the time the lunch hour begins good between noon tomorrow and tomorrow night late, you get a break.

rainfall totals, additional rainfall totals, a few hundredths of an inch is all we are expecting. tomorrow morning, freeze warnings and frost advisory for midnight until 9:00 a.m. we are talking subfreezing conditions, so protect pets, plants, and pipes. definitely be careful out temperatures in the morning, upper 20's to 30's, with the scattered showers and snow showers. the concern is, we could see some black ice, so be careful out there tomorrow afternoon. upper 40's to low 50's, you get the breaks from the rain only to see another system come in. accuweather 7-day forecast, it is a cold morning, wintry mix, even sunday we have rain, snow over the higher peaks, mount hamilton is the best likelihood, mount diablo. as a level 1 for monday, talking about a wet start to the week. a series of systems coming through week.

a lingering chance the wednesday. temperatures will come up, loadable -- low to upper 50's, but a time to get mid-50's to low 60's, so warmer conditions, and we will get a chance to dry out. i think what has made this such an exciting and interesting event is the fact that so many people experience it. . it was not just on mount hamilton or mount diablo. dan: which is the usual around here. sandhya: and in february, i have seen snow in the bay

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dan: first of the super bowl, now hollywood. rihanna is set to hit the stage at the oscars. ama: now we know which songs she will be singing. rihanna: ♪ lift me ama: of course, she is set to perform "lift me up," from the "black panther: wauconda forever" soundtrack. dan: you can watch the oscars live sunday, march 12, at 5:00 p.m. only here on abc 7. let's go to abc 7 anchor karina nova for a look at what is coming up at five: 30. karina: today's weather was

quite a site and experience for many of us in the bay area, but there is more to come this weekend and when you can expect more wind, cold, and rain over the next few days. plus, abc 7 is elevating black history month it we will introduce you to dorothy lay thin. she may be 80 over 80 list as a teacher, principal, and so much more. join us for those stories and so much more at 5:30. dan: we will, karina, thank you. ama: you can download the abc 7 app. or head to abc7news.com. dan: do that, or watching us on tv, abc news with dan next. ama: we will see you at 6:00.

tonight, the abc news exclusive. my interview a short time ago at the white house, one-on-one with president biden on the war in ukraine, now one year into this war. the president tonight on russia, china, and issues here at home. the ohio train derailment. is the president running for re-election? and is age a legitimate consideration? the president just back from ukraine and poland after addressing allies on the world stage. tonight, what the president told me about f-16s. will the u.s. send them to ukraine? what does the president make of china's new peace plan? and we ask about concerns that china could be considering offering lethal assistance, weapons for russia in this fight. we also press the president on issues here at home, the chinese spy balloon. why didn't china take the pentagon's call?