An atmospheric river hit California exactly as expected Wednesday night, adding a fresh deep blanket of snow to the Sierra Nevada, clogging traffic in the northern part of the state, and dropping more than 1.5 inches of rain on Fresno before noon Thursday.

Travelers in the Lake Tahoe region had to navigate closed roads, highways open under chain and speed controls, and crashed vehicles.

Fresno Forecast Features More Rain

In Fresno, the National Weather Service recorded 1.56 inches of rain from 8 p.m. Wednesday to noon today — the wettest event of the winter.

There is a 40% chance of rain, including thunderstorms, through Thursday night. Friday morning will bring an 80% chance of rain, falling to 30% Friday evening.

The NWS forecast calls for mostly sunny skies and a high of 62 degrees Saturday. The high temperature will rise to nearly 70 Sunday before another storm is expected to arrive that night.

Monday’s forecast includes an 80% chance of rain.

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Strong Winds Whip Through the Valley

NWS Hanford issued bulletins warning of wind gusts to 40 mph and possible hail at several Valley locations on Thursday.

A special weather statement has been issued for Porterville CA, Lindsay CA and East Porterville CA until 12:30 PM PDT pic.twitter.com/2qGVrjszb6

— NWS Hanford (@NWSHanford) March 13, 2025

High winds also buffeted the Sacramento area as the airport reported a gust of 51 mph and a 52 mph gust was recorded in Stockton.

Over on the Central Coast, NWS reported that most San Luis Obispo County communities received 1 to 2 inches of rain over the 24-hour period ending at 11 a.m. Thursday.