Interstate still closed in snowy Sierra Nevada after storm

RENO, Nev. (AP) — The main interstate highway from San Francisco to Reno remained closed Tuesday for a third day due to record-setting snow in the Lake Tahoe area after a winter storm blasted across northern California and Nevada.

With highway officials and state police reporting potentially dangerous road conditions, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak ordered delayed 10 a.m. opening for state government offices in Reno and Carson City.

Snow-choked Interstate 80 has been closed since Sunday from the Nevada state line to Placer County, California, although Caltrans said U.S. 50 reopened late Monday for vehicles with chains or four-wheel drive.

At Donner Pass, a University of California, Berkeley weather laboratory on Monday tallied almost 194 inches (4.9 meters) of snowfall for December, with more expected. That broke a monthly record of 179 inches (4.6 meters) set in 1970.

Officials in both states extended avalanche warnings Tuesday for areas north and west of Lake Tahoe.

Fewer airline flights appeared to be affected by weather Tuesday at Reno-Tahoe International Airport and at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, where several scheduled departures were delayed or canceled on Monday.

In Las Vegas, forecasts call for snow in mountain areas and rain on the Strip late Wednesday and Thursday, with a slight chance of precipitation and temperatures near freezing on Friday night, New Year's Eve.