SALT LAKE CITY — A winter storm forecast to cause travel issues and likely bring several inches of snow to Utah valleys, and the possibility of more than a foot of snow in the mountains, arrived Tuesday afternoon and evening.
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The Provo City School District announced that it will have a 2-hour late start Wednesday morning due to the snow. No other districts have announced delays or closures as of 10:30 p.m., but FOX 13 will keep you updated HERE.
Early in the evening, Rocky Mountain Power reported around 2,200 customers without power in the Rose Park area of Salt Lake City. By around 10:30 p.m., that had reduced to less than 100. There were also outages in Ogden and Cottonwood Heights, which have since been resolved.
The storm continued into the evening, giving commuters an especially hard time with the potential for snow squalls.
As Utahns head to bed, storms will spread into central areas of the state while still lingering in the north. Overnight Tuesday, wintery weather will taper off, making for a little break before another day of snow begins.
An interlodge alert has been issued for Hellgate residents in Alta through Wednesday morning, while a Code Blue alert was posted for Salt Lake City, allowing emergency shelters to open.
Snow will pick up again in the late morning Wednesday and continue through the entire day in northern and some areas of central Utah, once again making for a tough evening commute with the potential for snow squalls.
Wednesday's storm has the potential to travel a bit further into southern areas of Utah Wednesday night into early Thursday morning.
The storms are expected to bring a decent amount of snow to Utah, with northern mountains receiving anywhere from one to two feet of snow.
The Wasatch Back could get between 10 and 18 inches of powder while valleys may get three to eight inches.
A Snow Squall Warning was in effect until 7 p.m. for I-84 near Morgan, I-15 near Ogden and Layton, I-15 near Provo and Orem, and I-15, I-215, I-80 and US-89 in the Salt Lake area. Drivers were urged to delay travel until the squall passes.
A squall warning was also issued for the area of Evanston, Wyoming until 7:15 p.m.
An earlier warning expired at 6:15 p.m. that included the Logan area, as well as Ogden and Layton. Police warned drivers of white-out conditions in Sardine Canyon, and tire chains or 4-wheel-drive were required during the blizzard. They encouraged taking an alternate route as the canyon can become treacherous during snow storms.
The National Weather Service reported a 71 mph gust reported on I-15 in North Brigham City at 5:30 p.m.
Lisa Ayres-Merlotti shared the photos below showing the snowfall after less than an hour in Sandy:
There is a high potential for whiteout conditions throughout the evening Tuesday that may impact drivers as the sudden low visibility and intense rates of snow can be extremely difficult to navigate.
Because of the influx of snow, experts are also warning about the "considerable" danger of avalanches along the Wasatch Front.
Warnings were issued for all mountain elevations in Salt Lake, Ogden, Skyline and Moab, with the Utah Avalanche Center saying "considerable" danger will persist.
"The danger is most pronounced on recently wind-drifted slopes," the warning from the UAC reads in part. "Know that avalanches may be triggered remotely (at a distance) or from below. Collapsing and cracking are to be expected. Most accidents and fatalities occur with considerable danger."
It'll be a busy 48 hours in Utah and more storms are on the way, bringing more snow to Utah through the weekend.
