As we warm things up for Wednesday, the area is bracing for another atmospheric river type of storm system coming in later in the week. Mostly cloudy skies Wednesday will still allow temperatures to build into the low 70s, which will then drop back into the 60s Thursday. Winds will pick up, and a slight chance of a shower Thursday afternoon becomes a near sure thing Friday and Saturday. The possibility of heavy rain has kicked off an Areal Flood Watch for western Nevada and the Lake Tahoe area below 6,500’ from late Thursday night through Saturday morning. Speaking of the lake, a Winter Storm Watch is in effect during the same time period. While widespread flooding isn’t expected on most of the mainstem rivers, the Susan and Carson Rivers could experience some flooding due to limited upstream storage. Snow levels will likely start out early Friday morning above 7,000’, but will fall to near valley floors by Saturday. Winds will also be quite strong with this event, especially Late Thursday night into Friday.

A break on Sunday will be followed by another weaker storm Monday, which could bring another round of mountain snow and valley rain showers.