Lodi’s wet weather not expected to last for long
The weekend is looking wet, but don’t expect any heavy rainfall.
The local area is getting some stormy weather, but most of the real wet weather will miss Lodi, said Ken Clark, a senior meteorologist with private forecasting service Accuweather.com.
“It will be heavy in some of the foothills, up around I-80, but not in the Lodi area,” he said.
Lodi can expect rain through Saturday morning, then some possible scattered showers on Saturday afternoon. There may be another shower or two on Sunday, but the day could be dry, too, Clark said.
Then, the city should dry out until Wednesday or Thursday, he said.
All in all, it’s nothing out of the ordinary for Lodi.
“It’s getting into the wintertime, we’re going to have rain storms become more frequent,” Clark said.
The area typically sees occasional rain in November and December, with the wettest months in January and February.
As Lodi enters the rainy season, residents should take care to keep leaves out of the gutters and storm drains, said Jesse Barnett, the City of Lodi’s streets supervisor.
“If (a storm) drain is actually plugged, we don’t recommend them going into the drain and trying to unplug it,” he said. In that case, report the blockage to Public Works.
But any leaves that can be safely swept out of the gutters and away from storm drains should be, and garbage cans should not be left in the gutters, he said.
Anyone who needs to report a blockage or flooding can call 209-368-5735 during business hours, or 209-333-6740 after hours, Barnett said.
Any tree branches that are too close to power lines can be reported to Lodi Electric Utility, he added.
Drivers should take special precautions to drive safely, especially during the first few rains of the season, Clark said.
“The roadways build up oil and tire residue, and they tend to be slicker than other times because of that,” he said.
Drivers should slow down and put more distance between themselves and other cars on the road, because they’ll need more room to stop.
Also, California law requires that drivers turn on their headlights and taillights during rainy weather, he added.
Now’s also a good time to clean leaves and debris out of gutters and make sure any drainage issues are addressed, he added.
While the forecast looks typical for Lodi right now, forecasters are looking at the possibility of a dry winter for the area.
“Right now, we’re thinking that precipitation will probably be somewhat below normal for (Lodi),” Clark said.
However, because of Lodi’s location, that could change, he said. Forecasters are predicting a dry winter in Southern California and wetter weather than usual in the Pacific Northwest, he said.
Lodi and the surrounding region is right between those two expected patterns, so things are still a little up in the air, Clark said.
Either way, Northern California reservoirs are still full from last year’s epic rainfall, so there’s no risk of entering another drought yet, he said.