Placerville, CA Live Doppler Radar

Live radar for Placerville, El Dorado County: every NWS radar combined, rain, snow and ice colors, flash-flood risk, storm tracks and official warnings.

Open live radar for Placerville What TALON shows

What weather hits Placerville?

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged river or areal flooding on 31 days in the Central Motherlode Between 1000-3000 ft forecast zone and El Dorado County — the most common reported hazard around Placerville, mostly in January and February. Next come debris flows (10 days) and flash flooding (3 days).

Hazard	Days reported	Most recent	Worst on record
Flooding	31	Apr 2026	Jan 3, 2023 · 1 death
Debris flows	10	Oct 2021	Feb 21, 2017 · $6.5 million damage
Flash flooding	3	Jul 2024	Jan 1, 1997 · $10 million damage
Damaging thunderstorm winds	3	Jun 2026	Jun 21, 2025 · 8 deaths
Wildfires	1	Oct 1998	Oct 20, 1998 · $200,000 damage

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1996–2026 (the latest year is partial). A "day" is a date with at least one report in the Central Motherlode Between 1000-3000 ft forecast zone and El Dorado County; damage is as reported, not adjusted for inflation.

Which radars cover Placerville?

The closest NEXRAD Doppler radar is KDAX (Sacramento, CA), about 50 miles west-southwest. Radar beams climb as they travel, so the height of the lowest scan over town decides how low in a storm the radar can see.

Radar	Distance	Lowest beam over Placerville	View
KDAX Sacramento, CA	50 mi west-southwest	3,600 ft	Good — most storms and steady rain or snow show clearly
KBBX Beale AFB, CA	69 mi northwest	5,600 ft	Good — most storms and steady rain or snow show clearly
KRGX Reno, NV	101 mi northeast	9,700 ft	Fair — the beam can pass over shallow snow and low-level rotation

Beam height is the center of the 0.5° scan above the radar, with standard refraction. Mountains near a radar can block it further.

Tornado & hail history near Placerville

Since 1950, NOAA has recorded 6 tornadoes within 25 miles of Placerville. Most came in April and November. The strongest was an EF1 on December 24, 2015, which passed about 11 miles west-southwest of town. The most recent was an EF0 on November 18, 2020, which passed about 9 miles southwest of town.

Hail: 4 reports of 1-inch or larger hail within 25 miles since 1955; the largest was 1.00-inch hail on February 19, 2024.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center — tornadoes 1950–2025, hail 1955–2025. Distances are to each tornado's track; ratings before February 2007 use the original Fujita scale.

On TALON you get Placerville's live radar loop, rain/snow/ice colors, flash-flood risk, storm tracks with arrival times and NWS warnings free; close-up radar and rotation detection are part of TALON Pro.

Placerville radar FAQ

Where is the nearest weather radar to Placerville, CA?

KDAX (Sacramento, CA), about 50 miles west-southwest. KBBX (Beale AFB, CA) is 69 miles away and also covers the area.

How often does Placerville flood?

Since 1996 the National Weather Service has logged river or areal flooding on 31 days in the Central Motherlode Between 1000-3000 ft forecast zone and El Dorado County; the deadliest was on January 3, 2023, with 1 death. TALON's free flash-flood risk layer shows, every 2 minutes, how close the rain that has fallen is to what it takes to flood — turn it on under Layers.

Is TALON's radar for Placerville free?

Yes — the US radar loop, rain/snow/ice colors, flash-flood risk, storm tracks and NWS warnings are free in any browser. Close-up radar, rotation detection and longer forecasts are part of TALON Pro.

Should I rely on radar for my safety?

No app replaces official warnings. When the National Weather Service issues a warning for Placerville, follow it right away — see watch vs. warning.

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