By SPA
Fernley, Nevada : Still more snow piled up Sunday in the western U.S. mountains, where at least 5 feet (1.5 meters) had fallen from a storm that contributed to flooding, killed at least three people and blacked out thousands of customers on the West Coast, according to AP.
One hiker was missing in snow-covered mountains in Southern California, and four snowmobilers were missing in heavy snow in the mountains of southern Colorado.
At least 5 feet (1.5 meters) of snow had fallen on ski areas in the rugged Sierra Nevada mountains by early Sunday, with 9 feet (2.7 meters) possible at some higher elevations, the National Weather Service said. As much as 3 feet (0.9 meters) more could hit the area by Tuesday evening, the weather service said.
A ruptured levee sent a frigid wall of water from a rain-swollen canal into the desert town of Fernley early Saturday, flooding hundreds of homes and forcing the rescue of dozens of people by helicopter and boat.
No injuries were reported in the flood in the town about 30 miles (50 kilometers) east of Reno.
Up to 3,500 people were temporarily stranded and an estimated 1,500 ended up being displaced from their homes, Huntley said Saturday night.
We saw water coming in the back door and tried to grab as much stuff as possible to save it. The water was rising very quickly and it was scary, said one resident, Eric Cornett.
As the water receded, Fernley Mayor Todd Cutler said he had reports of damage to at least 300 to 400 homes. The cause of the levee break was not clear.
Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons declared the county an emergency area. The Federal Emergency Management Agency planned to conduct a damage assessment Monday.
In California, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared emergencies in three counties hit hard by the storms.
In the mountains east of Los Angeles, authorities searched Sunday for a 62-year-old man who went hiking Friday afternoon just before the storm began, San Bernardino County sheriff’s spokeswoman Arden Wiltshire said.
Heavy snow prevented rescuers from resuming a search Sunday for four snowmobilers missing since Friday near Colorado’s Cumbres Pass, elevation 10,222 feet (3,115 meters).
California and Nevada officials said low visibility prompted authorities to again close nearly 100 miles (160 kilometers) of Interstate 80 from about 30 miles (50 kilometers) east of Sacramento until just over the eastern border because of blizzard conditions, but it was reopened Sunday morning.
The weather also was blamed for a 17-car pileup that closed the westbound lanes of I-80 just east of the Reno-Sparks area Saturday afternoon.
More than 220,000 homes and businesses in Northern California were still without power Sunday, and Pacific Gas and Electric said the storm had downed nearly 500 miles (804 kilometers) of power lines and more than 500 utility poles throughout the Central Valley and the San Francisco Bay area.
East of Los Angeles, Lindsey Marie Erickson, 25, died after her pickup truck was swept into a flood channel, police said. Rescuers found her boyfriend, Rene Valencia, 36, clinging to a tree.
The storm also was blamed for the death of a woman killed by a falling tree in Oregon, and a falling branch killed a transportation worker in Northern California on Friday.
Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski declared a state of emergency for Umatilla County because of wind damage.