Santa Cruz Mountains hit with rare amount of snow

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ByMatt Keller KGO logo
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Santa Cruz Mountains hit with rare amount of snow
The higher elevations of the Santa Cruz Mountains saw a lot of snow for the area into the morning hours.

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KGO) -- The higher elevations of the Santa Cruz Mountains saw a lot of snow for the area into the morning hours.

The Summit off Highway 17 in the Santa Cruz Mountains was a tourist spot this morning.

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San Jose resident Raymond Gerona stopped at the Summit on his way to work to take a photo with his friends. He said, "We just had to savor the moment. When will this happen again? Who knows?"

But it wasn't all fun and games. The snow was serious. Parked cars were covered in white. Visibility was also affected for the vehicles in motion.

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SKY7 was over the snow in the foothills between Mt. Hamilton and Livermore, Calif. on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019.
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The CHP had to close down Highway 17 in both directions for about a half hour just after midnight.

Caltrans crews came through with plows to move away the sticking snow.

CHP officers then paced traffic to make sure speeds stayed slow and safe.

This much snow is not common up here in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

And what was most amazing, the morning commute appeared to go relatively smoothly considering the conditions.

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