Cold weather will return to Carson City and western Nevada this week with the possibility of snow by Thursday night, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.
A strong cold front will move into the region ending a week of sunny skies and warm weather. The system will produce some light snow by Thursday night into Friday for the Sierra, Lake Tahoe and on to the valley floor.
Southwest winds on Thursday ahead of the front will pick up, with gusts up to 40 mph, and Sierra ridges gusting over 60 mph. Bands of snow are forecast to develop behind the cold front Thursday evening, with residual showers through Friday. In the valleys, gusts should remain in the 30 mph range with stronger winds along the Highway 395 corridor, according to the weather service.
An inch or two of snow is possible for the Carson City region, with slightly higher amounts in the Sierra. Some areas that get stuck under stronger bands of snow may pick up a few inches while other areas may see little or no accumulation, the weather service states.
There may be some impacts for Thursday evening's commute, but it is more likely that Friday morning's commute will be impacted due to snow accumulation. Temperatures will plummet Friday into the weekend with highs around 10-15 degrees below normal.
For the latest on the system go to www.CarsonWeather.com.