"This storm was very different. We're looking at record level snowfalls in many of these communities, such that life pretty much ground to a halt," Sherwin said.
About eight feet of snow surrounded Paige Renfro's Crestline, California, home after a rare blizzard on Feb. 24, 2023. About three feet of snow remained three weeks later., for 38 years in the San Bernardino Mountains, living in their"treetops." Their home, which rests on a steep slope, wasn’t damaged, but not everyone was so lucky.
They maintain a fleet of eight snow cats equipped with fire gear, the largest fleet in the region. With a"complete loss of road structures," the snow cats were the only vehicles used during the worst of the icy roads. The San Bernardino County Fire Department used a fleet of eight snowcats during the worst of the storm. Fire Station No. 91 in Lake Arrowhead, CA, is still surrounded by snow drifts on March 15, 2023, three weeks since the blizzard.
Goodwin’s, one of the only grocery stores serving the Lake Arrowhead and Crestline communities, is still closed after the snow damaged the property. It’s been open since 1946. But some in more remote parts of the mountains, like the Renfros, live on private roads that the county is not responsible for plowing. If they’re not plowed, power companies can’t get to them. Their neighbors were out of power for nine days.