Utah mountains get snow, rain for valleys for Christmas
Dec 23, 2021, 6:51 AM | Updated: 8:48 am
Salt Lake City in winter (Credit Getty Images)
(Credit Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY — If you’ve been dreaming of a Utah white, snow-filled Christmas this year, you’ll mostly get it.
But we have to get through all the wind first.
The east benches of the Salt Lake Valley were getting gusted with some wind. The National Weather Service said parts of the valley could see gusts of up to 50 miles per hour.
The windy weather took down a tree on the SL Valley east bench this morning. Look at my cute dad chopping away so the sidewalk can be cleared. @kslnewsradio pic.twitter.com/tmTcviemxn
— Kira Hoffelmeyer (@kirahoffelmeyer) December 23, 2021
And things were gusty in Tooele County, too.
Winds continue to gust. Here’s a look in Tooele County where strong winds are constant. pic.twitter.com/IwS6jRk9Mk
— Heather Kelly (@KSLHeatherKelly) December 23, 2021
What to plan on for your commute
Weyman says we’re looking at rain and snow for the valleys, primarily higher elevation snow tomorrow.
“If you’re traveling up north, you’ll see snow,” says Weyman. “If you’re going south, you’ll see rain.”
Road Weather Alert: Heavy mountain road snow expected across northern and central Utah mountain routes 12 PM Thursday – 6 AM Sat. For more information visit: https://t.co/4P1gO1U0Gg#utwx #utsnow pic.twitter.com/J2OjbSGezQ
— UDOT Traffic (@UDOTTRAFFIC) December 22, 2021
Much of the western U.S. will get doused by these storms.
But what Utah is already getting hit with is causing major slowdowns in some of the Wasatch Front’s canyons.
Crash EB US-189 (Provo Canyon). Traffic is at a stop at the turn off to go to Sundance Resort (SR-92). Expect big delays heading toward Deer Creek Reservoir. pic.twitter.com/LYgYq3DhrE
— Heather Kelly (@KSLHeatherKelly) December 23, 2021
There are reports of multiple accidents near Deer Creek Dam, likely because of the icy conditions there.
Traffic backups stacking where the road up Provo Canyon meets SR-92.
This storm packs a water punch for Utah… with its snow
The National Weather Service of Salt Lake City issued a winter storm warning and winter weather advisory for parts of Utah’s mountains and backcountry spaces starting Thursday and lasting through Friday.
#WeatherAlert 👋 Make sure your vehicles are prepared and that you are comfortable driving in winter weather conditions in the mountains! Expect periods of heavy road snow starting tomorrow (12/23) afternoon. ❄️ #DriveWinterSafe https://t.co/38Mj5AshRi
— UDOT Cottonwood Canyons (@UDOTcottonwoods) December 22, 2021
The storm could bring one to two feet of snow to the mountains, even a possibility of three for some areas.
KSL Meteorologist Grant Weyman said it’ll be a very active holiday weekend no matter where you are, and it brings lots of water with it.
“Now, all the way through Christmas and the day after that, and really all the way into next week… a lot of this is going to be snow, well over three inches at Alta,” says Weyman. “You turn that into the snow equivalent and could be literally over like three or four feet by the end of the week.”
And here are the details on your white Christmas
“Snow in the morning, it’ll be snowy travel for anyone up north that day,” says Weyman. “Then there is another storm coming in Sunday. And yes, once again, we’re looking at snowy travel for our state, especially to the south and to the east.”
You can expect the snow to last into Sunday and Monday.
