SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The Latest on California storms (all times local):
7:30 p.m.
A storm that’s lashed Northern California with rain and high winds may have killed a man in Oakland.
California Highway Patrol Officer Herman Baza says a tree fell on a homeless man at an embankment near a freeway Wednesday, killing him. Officers got the call shortly before 5:30 p.m.
Baza says the man may have been trying to shelter from the weather when he was struck.
Another tree struck a car on the BART line between Pleasant Hill and Concord stations but the agency says there were no injuries or damage. Flooding also shut down a BART station in San Francisco.
Pacific Gas & Electric reports about 20,000 customers are without power.
The entire Bay Area is under a flood watch and there’s an avalanche warning in the Sierra Nevada.
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4:15 p.m.
Heavy snowfall, multiple spin-outs and a jack-knifed big rig forced the closing of a major Northern California freeway in the Sierra Nevada.
The California Highway Patrol said multiple spin-outs prompted the closure of westbound Interstate 80 at the Nevada border. The CHP said a tractor trailer jack-knifed on eastbound 80, prompting the closure about 85 miles (137 kilometers) east of Sacramento.
The heavy snowfall in the Sierra Nevada was an indication that one of the biggest winter storms of the season has arrived.
More than 4 inches of rain has fallen in the last 24 hours in the higher elevations of nearby Yuba County.
Meanwhile, Pacific Gas & Electric reports 7,032 customers are without power, most of them north of San Francisco.
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11:55 a.m.
A mudslide on a major Northern California freeway just north of the Golden Gate Bridge snarled the morning commute as road conditions throughout the state deteriorated amid heavy rain and snow.
The California Highway Patrol said the 7 a.m. slide Wednesday closed southbound Highway 101 for about an hour. The route across the bridge is the only direct access motorists north of the city have to San Francisco.
Traffic remained heavy after the slide was cleared. The CHP warned of dangerous road conditions while the heavy winds and rain persist.
Three people, including an infant, were killed Tuesday night in a freeway spinout accident in Placerville, California, about 130 miles 9202 kilometers) east of San Francisco.
The CHP says a 51-year-old man driving a Volvo west on Highway 50 lost control of the car and spun into the eastbound lane, striking a Subaru traveling about 65 mph. The Volvo’s driver, a 1-year-old girl and an adult passenger were killed. The Subaru’s driver suffered major injuries and was flown to a nearby hospital.
The CHP says speed and rain-slickened roads appear to have played factors in the accident. The victims’ names weren’t released.
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10:45 a.m.
Numerous vehicles have collided in a foggy mountain pass as a storm system passes through Southern California.
The San Bernardino County Fire Department says 19 vehicles collided Wednesday morning on the southbound side of Interstate 15 in Cajon (kuh-HOHN) Pass, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) east of Los Angeles.
The department says 35 people suffered minor to moderate injuries but most are declining to be taken to hospitals.
The department says weather was a contributing factor in the collision, which has closed the southbound side of the interstate. It is a major route between Southern California and Las Vegas.
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7:10 a.m.
Light rain is falling in some parts of Northern California ahead of a Pacific storm expected to bring heavy rain and strong winds that could unleash mudslides to the site of the deadliest wildfire in state history.
Forecasters said Wednesday there could be water level rises on small rivers and creeks and debris flows in burn scars areas, including Butte County. That’s where a November wildfire killed 86 people and destroyed nearly 15,000 homes.
An evacuation warning is in place for the community of Pulga, near the town of Paradise which was decimated by the blaze.
The storm is expected to arrive later Wednesday and continue into Thursday.
A blizzard warning for much of the Sierra Nevada and Lake Tahoe takes effect Wednesday night, with meteorologists predicting as much of 5 feet (1.5 meters) of snow in upper elevations and wind gusts of up to 100 mph (160 kph) on ridgetops.
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12:00 p.m.
Another Pacific storm is bearing down on California, bringing a threat of mudslides to the site of the deadliest wildfire in state history and a rare blizzard warning in the Sierra Nevada.
An evacuation warning is in place for Pulga a neighboring town of Paradise, which was virtually incinerated two months ago by the Camp Fire that killed 86 people and destroyed nearly 15,000 homes.
Flash flood and high wind watches will go into effect Wednesday afternoon and night in the Sacramento and San Francisco areas.
A blizzard warning for much of the Sierra Nevada and Lake Tahoe takes effect Wednesday night, with meteorologists predicting as much of 5 feet (1.5 meters) of snow in upper elevations and wind gusts of up to 100 mph on ridgetops.
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