Storm brings light rain to area
At least two more storms this week
The first of at least three storms this week brought only light showers to the Porterville area, but it brought hail, lightening and the threat of tornadoes to the Modesto area on Tuesday.
As of 5 p.m., Porterville had seen just 0.18 of an inch, bringing the season total to 11.65 inches. That is an inch more than the seasonal average and there is still more than three months left in the rainfall year.
A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for west-central Tulare County from 6 to 6:30 p.m. by the National Weather Service. They were tracking a severe thunderstorm near Tulare that was moving northeast and capable of producing quarter-sized hail and winds in excess of 60 mph.
The tornado warning was issued for Stanislaus County about noon on Tuesday as a band of severe weather moved north to south over the area. The town of Oakdale was directly in the path and as the day wore on, the band of severe continued to move south. A tornado warning was issued for parts of Merced County as well. There were no reports of tornadoes actually touching down.
The rain began early Tuesday morning in the South Valley, which saw mostly light showers.
It is the first storm in a series to hit the area this week, said meteorologist Scott Borgioli with Weather Ag.
He said the storms are bringing “unstable air” to the Valley and there will be a small threat of thunderstorms today as well. The National Weather Service in Hanford is putting today’s chance of rain at 40 percent in the morning, then tapering off.
The next storm system will arrive Friday and Borgioli expects it to bring more rain as it will have a “Pineapple Connection.” He said that storm could bring up to an inch of rain to the South Valley and more than a foot of snow in the mountains.
Borgioli said another system is possible for Monday and yet another on March 30-31.
The latest storm stretched from Northern California into Southern California.