It will be mostly sunny across San Diego County this week — until Sunday, when a potentially significant new Pacific storm will move in, dropping between 0.75 and 1.25 inches of rain from the coast to inland foothills and valleys, the National Weather Service said.
Rivers and flood channels are again flowing hard across San Diego County after a new Pacific storm moved through the region before dawn Thursday, bringing a fifth straight day of precipitation.
A cold Pacific storm will drop 2 to 2.5 inches of rain across much of San Diego County from Thursday morning to Friday afternoon, possibly causing heavy runoff in a region still recovering from last week’s damaging, storm-induced flooding, the National Weather Service said.
The Pacific storm that passed through San Diego County on Tuesday and early Wednesday was among the strongest, most widespread systems to hit the region since the rainy season began on Oct. 1.
The system pushed March rainfall at San Diego International Airport to 3.42 inches. The airport averages 1.46 inches for the entire month of March.
The parade of severe storms slamming into Northern California could lead to one of the strongest seasons since the wild El Niño-fueled winter of 1997–98, given the relentless pace of weather systems marching in with little relief. And this isn’t even an El Niño year. Already, Northern California and the Central Valley have been hit by a number of history-making storms, pouring floodwaters into homes, cars, restaurants, a nursing home, freeways and underpasses.
The atmospheric river storm that was bearing down on the Bay Area Wednesday night and Thursday morning raised concerns about mudslides, power outages and other problems. And a series of new storms headed our way this weekend means the end is not yet in sight.
California has seen so much rain in the last few weeks that farm fields are inundated and normally dry creeks and drainage ditches have become torrents of water racing toward the ocean. At the same time, most of the state is still in severe drought. All that runoff raises the question — why can’t more rainwater be collected and stored for the long, dry spring and summer when it’s needed?
Widespread rain returns to San Diego County Thursday for a fifth day in a row as yet another atmospheric river impacts our state. Gov. Gavin Newsom has proclaimed a state of emergency throughout California in response to severe winter storms.
In a world getting used to extreme weather, 2023 is starting out more bonkers than ever and meteorologists are saying it’s natural weather weirdness with a bit of help from human-caused climate change. Much of what’s causing problems worldwide is coming out of a roiling Pacific Ocean, transported by a wavy jet stream, experts said.
For a second consecutive week, San Diego County will get hit by a pair of back-to-back storms that are part of larger systems that will bring badly needed rain to California’s reservoirs and minimize the risk of wildfires. The polar jet stream has slumped to the south and is guiding storms to the West Coast like a conveyor belt, says the National Weather Service.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
