Massive blizzard hits western United States

A massive blizzard is pounding parts of California and Nevada in the western United States.

The snowstorm has closed major roads, shut down ski resorts and left tens of thousands of homes without power.

The blizzard was especially severe in the mountainous Sierra Nevada region, where wind gusts reportedly reached 305km/h (190mph).

People have been warned of a "high to extreme avalanche danger" there, including the greater Lake Tahoe area.

A power outage map shows more than 33,000 people in Nevada and nearly 24,000 in California without electricity.

A 75-mile (121km) stretch of the Interstate 80 highway was shut down on Saturday. The California Highway Patrol Office in Truckee, close to the state border with Nevada, said on X (formerly Twitter) that "emergency personnel and tow trucks had a difficult time getting to motorists due to blizzard conditions."

The mountain areas were worst hit by the storm.

Up to 3m (10ft) of snow was expected at higher elevations, a US National Weather Service meteorologist said on Saturday, which could create "life-threatening concern" for people living near Lake Tahoe.

Several ski resorts around Lake Tahoe that closed on Friday remained shut on Saturday, but some hope to open on Sunday.

Yosemite National Park was closed on Friday, and visitors were asked to leave by noon. It will remain closed at least until Sunday afternoon, and possibly even longer depending on the weather conditions.

Weather forecasters have urged people to remain where they are over the weekend, warning it could take significant time to dig commuters out of the snow if they got stuck in the storm.

Some other parts of the United States continue to experience extreme weather.

Wildfires are raging in Texas, where firefighters are struggling to contain the massive blaze amid difficult weather conditions.