A powerful late-April winter storm is bearing down on the Pacific Northwest and northern California, prompting the National Weather Service to issue Winter Storm Warnings across parts of five states: Oregon, Washington, California, Idaho, and Nevada. Higher elevations in the Cascade Range could see 10 to 20 inches of snow through the weekend, while portions of the Sierra Nevada face even steeper totals, with some zones forecast to receive up to 32 inches. The warnings, posted by multiple NWS forecast offices on April 24, 2026, flag dangerous travel conditions, high winds, and the potential for widespread power outages.
Where the heaviest snow is expected
The NWS forecast office in Pendleton, Oregon, issued an urgent winter weather message covering Cascade zones from the Mount Hood corridor south through the Oregon Cascades. Forecast accumulations range from 10 to 20 inches above 4,000 feet, with wind gusts strong enough to reduce visibility to near zero during the heaviest snow bands. The warning text states explicitly that travel could become “very difficult to impossible” at times.
Farther south, the San Joaquin Valley/Hanford, California, forecast office has a Winter Storm Warning in effect for Sierra Nevada areas. Its zone forecast product lists snow accumulations up to 17 inches in lower Sierra zones and up to 32 inches at higher elevations, accompanied by gusty winds and plummeting temperatures. Passes along Interstate 80 near Donner Summit and Highway 50 near Echo Summit are historically vulnerable to closure during storms of this magnitude.
In Washington, the Cascades east of Seattle and along the Interstate 90 corridor over Snoqualmie Pass fall within warning-eligible zones. Parts of northern Nevada and central Idaho are also included in the broader warning footprint, though expected totals there are generally lower, in the 6-to-12-inch range at pass level. The NWS national warning map shows the full extent of active alerts, updated every few hours as model data refreshes.
Timing and conditions
Snow is expected to intensify late Thursday night into Friday across the Oregon and Washington Cascades, with the heaviest bands arriving Friday afternoon through Saturday morning. The Sierra Nevada will see a slightly later peak, with the most significant accumulation forecast from Friday evening into Sunday. Wind gusts of 40 to 55 mph are possible along exposed ridgelines, creating blowing and drifting snow that can bury roads within minutes of plowing.
Temperatures at pass level are forecast to hover in the mid-20s Fahrenheit during the storm’s peak, cold enough to keep precipitation as all snow rather than a rain-snow mix. That is significant: a warmer storm would produce less total accumulation but could introduce freezing rain, which is arguably more dangerous for drivers. This system appears cold enough to deliver dry, wind-driven powder at the highest elevations and heavier, wetter snow closer to 3,500 feet.
What this season has already delivered
The current warnings land in a winter season that has already produced several high-impact snow events. On January 14, 2026, a lake-effect snow event in northern Indiana dropped 20.0 inches at a single observation site, a total recorded through the CoCoRaHS citizen-science network and published in a Preliminary Local Storm Report by the NWS Northern Indiana office. That was a measured, post-event figure, not a forecast.
Less than two weeks later, a major nor’easter struck the Northeast from January 25 to 26, burying parts of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut under heavy snow. The NWS New York City office compiled verified totals from official observers, CoCoRaHS stations, and trained spotters. The Louisville, Kentucky, forecast office documented the same system’s ice and snow impacts farther south, including a spike in power outages across its coverage area. NOAA’s satellite division confirmed the storm’s scale through remote sensing imagery.
Those events established that the 2025-2026 winter pattern has repeatedly supported large, moisture-rich storm systems capable of delivering 15-plus-inch snowfalls. The current Cascades and Sierra Nevada warnings fit that pattern, and NWS offices are using the same modeling tools and verification methods that accurately captured January’s storms.
What travelers and residents should do now
State departments of transportation in Oregon, Washington, and California typically activate chain requirements or full pass closures once snow rates exceed roughly two inches per hour. Drivers planning to cross Snoqualmie Pass, Santiam Pass, or any Sierra crossing this weekend should check real-time road conditions through state DOT websites and consider delaying travel until Sunday afternoon or Monday, when the storm is expected to wind down.
For residents in mountain communities, the combination of heavy snow and high winds raises the risk of downed trees and power lines. Utility crews often cannot reach remote areas during active storms, so outages lasting 12 to 24 hours or longer are possible. The NWS recommends keeping emergency kits stocked with water, food, medications, flashlights, and extra batteries, and ensuring that backup heating sources are safe for indoor use.
It is worth noting that snowfall forecasts of 10 to 20 inches represent a range, not a guarantee. Actual totals depend on storm speed, moisture content, and subtle shifts in the track. A slight wobble south could spare one pass while hammering another. The Weather Prediction Center’s Winter Storm Severity Index, which factors in ground conditions, wind, and ice loading alongside raw snow totals, currently flags portions of the central Cascades and northern Sierra for “major” to “extreme” impact potential.
Staying ahead of the storm
The most reliable information will come from updated NWS warnings and local forecast office discussions, which are refreshed every few hours during active events. Residents and travelers in the five affected states should monitor those products closely through the NWS website or the agency’s mobile app. County emergency management offices and local news outlets will carry shelter locations, road-closure updates, and utility restoration timelines as they become available.
In a season that has already punished communities from Indiana to Connecticut, this week’s warnings for the Cascades and Sierra Nevada are not abstract. They reflect a storm system that forecasters are tracking with high confidence, backed by satellite imagery, surface observations, and model agreement. The snow is coming. The only real question is exactly how much falls where, and that answer will not be final until the last flake settles.
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*This article was researched with the help of AI, with human editors creating the final content.
