Thunderstorms possible in NorCal this weekend

Mild temperatures and mostly calm winds are in the forecast for Northern California this weekend, along with a chance of scattered thunderstorms in the northern Sacramento Valley through Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

The high in Sacramento is expected to dip to about 81 today and should stay in the low 80s Sunday and Monday, according to the latest NWS forecasts.

In Lodi, residents can expect a high of 79 today, with temperatures reaching the mid- to high 70s and low 80s through Thursday, according to Accuweather, a private forecasting service. Days will begin heating back up to the high 80s and low 90s late next week, Accuweather said. Lows are expected to reach the high 40s to low 50s over the next several days.

Winds will likely be minimal Saturday and Sunday, the NWS said.

It’s a sharp contrast from the previous weekend, when weather officials issued a red flag warning across the entire Sacramento

Valley due to gusts reaching up to 40 mph combining with critically dry conditions and high temperatures in the 90s. That fire weather warning ended up extending through this past Tuesday; there were no major fire starts reported, but several relatively small incidents did spark.

The NWS hasn’t issued a fire weather watch or red flag warning for this weekend due to calm winds, but the NWS Sacramento office does advise that thunderstorms are possible Friday through Sunday across the northern valley, the Sierra Nevada range and the foothills just east of Sacramento.

NWS in a forecast message warned that thunderstorms can bring “possible fire starts” due to lightning strikes and locally gusty winds.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday expanded his drought emergency declaration to 41 total counties, including the entire Sacramento region, following a very dry winter and spring.