Rain, growing winds likely in Lodi tonight

It’s beginning to look a lot like winter, with showers expected intermittently through the rest of the week.

Following a dry spell and some cool weather, Lodi will finally be seeing rain tonight and through the week.

“California had a delayed start to the rainy season. That is not usually common this time of the year, but the good news is that it is finally raining,” said Randy Adkins, a senior meteorologist with Accuweather. com, a private forecasting firm.

Lodians can expect to see rain by early nightfall, he said. Up to half an inch of precipitation is expected to fall tonight.

“The highs today will remain in the mid- to low 50s (and) temperatures will drop from the mid- to upper 30s tonight,” Adkins said.

Wind speeds will start to pick up by 3 p.m. today, with gusts reaching 34 mph by 7 p.m., he said.

The California coast is expected to see thunderstorms, he added, which should sweep through the Sacramento Valley. There is not a current risk for a thunderstorm in Lodi, but there is a low risk in Sacramento.

The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District has issued a health warning due to wind speeds, reminding people with heart or lung disease, older adults and children to avoid prolonged exposure outdoors.

“The windy conditions will cause localized blowing dust in areas where soils are exceptionally dry, and create unhealthy concentrations,” the organization said in a statement.

The air district has reported a low-pressure system dropping southward along the east side of the Sierra Nevada, which is expected to generate strong northwesterly winds across the San Joaquin Valley.

Winter storms will drop heavy snow over the Sierra Nevada mountain range and several other regions over the next few days, Adkins said.

“People traveling for Thanksgiving might have some trouble traveling through the Sierras, which are expected to get hit with heavy snow. Interstate 80 could be closed down as a result of the heavy snowfall,” he said.

Anyone traveling to the Sierra should check in with local Caltrans agencies regarding potential chain restrictions, he said.

“The snowfall began today and it will persist through the rest of the week,” he said.

The National Weather Service has

“People traveling for Thanksgiving might have some trouble traveling through the Sierras, which are expected to get hit with heavy snow. Interstate 80 could be closed down as a result of the heavy snowfall.” RANDY ADKINS, A SENIOR METEOROLOGIST WITH ACCUWEATHER.COM

reported about 1 to 2 feet of snow will fall at elevations above 2,000 feet, and more than 3 feet is expected to fall at higher peaks in the Sierra between this morning and tomorrow evening.

Caltrans is scheduled to close Ebbetts Pass on Highway 4, Monitor Pass on Highway 89 and Sonora Pass on Highway 108 in advance of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend due to a winter storm forecast in the Sierra.

Ebbetts and Sonora passes will both be closed at noon today, and Monitor Pass will be closed at 1 p.m. today.

No decision has been made regarding seasonal closures of the three passes. Caltrans will assess the routes next week to determine seasonal closure status.

Tioga Pass in Yosemite National Park remains closed. For more information, visit www.dot.ca.gov.

In the meantime, Lodians can anticipate rainstorms through Wednesday afternoon, though the rain should slow down until early Thursday morning.

“The bulk of Thursday will be dry. There may be a few scattered showers, but most of the day will have breaks of sunshine, through Friday into early Saturday,” Adkins said.

The break from the rain will be brief, however. More rain is expected to fall late Saturday afternoon into the evening.