The winter storm hammering East Idaho with snow and high winds has shut down a 30-mile stretch of Interstate 15.
The Idaho Transportation Department closed the interstate late Sunday morning from Dubois to the Montana border because of "high winds, blowing snow and reduced visibility." It's not known when the stretch of Interstate 15 will reopen but the storm that caused the closure is expected to continue dumping snow on East Idaho through Sunday night.
Also shut down until further notice are Highway 32 between Ashton and Tetonia and Highway 33 between Sugar City and Tetonia. The Transportation Department shut down the highways on Sunday afternoon because of blowing and drifting snow and it's unknown when they will be reopened.
The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning and multiple winter weather advisories for East Idaho warning the public about the storm and the dangerous driving conditions it's created. Multiple weather-related wrecks and slide-offs occurred on Sunday morning and afternoon on East Idaho's roads, especially on Interstate 15 in the Pocatello area. Authorities haven't yet said whether any of those crashes resulted in injuries.
The possibility of even more snow remains in the forecast for East Idaho Monday through this coming Saturday.
The snow from the current storm began falling on East Idaho Saturday morning and afternoon and is forecast to continue through Sunday night.
Motorists are being told to use caution because of the snow-covered roads and limited visibility in East Idaho. The storm could create white-out conditions at times in East Idaho that could make for very dangerous driving conditions. Winds of up to 45 mph are forecast for the region.
The weather service said the Island Park area will be hardest hit by the storm and could see 9 to 12 inches of snow Sunday afternoon through Sunday night. A winter storm warning has been declared for the Island Park area and people there are being encouraged to avoid driving if at all possible because of the dangerous road conditions. The winter storm warning includes Ashton Hill, Henry's Lake, Raynolds Pass and Targhee Pass.
The Ashton, Arbon, Inkom, McCammon, Arimo, Downey, Swanlake, Lava Hot Springs, Malad, Preston, Weston, Dayton, Franklin, Thatcher, St. Charles, Montpelier, Georgetown, Paris, Grace, Soda Springs, Bancroft, Henry, Bone, Wayan, Swan Valley, Palisades, Victor, Driggs and Tetonia areas could receive 6 to 10 inches of snow Sunday afternoon through Sunday night.
The Dubois, Spencer, Mud Lake, Atomic City, Idaho National Laboratory, Arco and Craters of the Moon areas could receive 6 to 9 inches of snow Sunday afternoon through Sunday night.
The following areas could get 2 to 4 inches of snow from the storm during that same time frame: Idaho Falls, Ammon, Rigby, Ririe, Roberts, Rexburg, Sugar City and St. Anthony.
The Pocatello, Chubbuck, Malta, Holbrook, Oakley, Albion, American Falls, Aberdeen, Raft River, Declo, Burley, Rupert, Heyburn, Paul, Fort Hall, Blackfoot, Firth, Rockland and Shelley areas are forecast to receive 1 to 4 inches of snow Sunday afternoon through Sunday night.
Elsewhere in the state, winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories calling for several inches of snow have been issued for the central Idaho mountains including Mackay, Salmon, Stanley, Sun Valley, Ketchum and Hailey and for most of North Idaho. Winter weather advisories are in effect for southwest Idaho including the Boise and Mountain Home areas and for south central Idaho including the Shoshone, Twin Falls and Jerome areas.
Outside of Idaho, winter storm warnings and/or winter weather advisories are in effect in Oregon, Washington state, Montana, Wyoming, Utah and Nevada.
The forecast for East Idaho is calling for the chance of more snow to fall Monday through Saturday. The weather service has not yet issued any winter weather alerts, advisories or warnings about that expected precipitation but those will likely be forthcoming if the forecast holds.
Stay with idahostatejournal.com as those storms approach to find out the latest forecast information.