Forecast says brunt of cold winter storm hitting area to be felt today
A winter storm was set to bring rain to Southern California starting Tuesday night, but the amount was only expected to make a small dent in what has been a dry fall and winter season, weather forecasters said.
The height of the storm was projected to be felt this morning, with steady rainfall throughout the morning and showers continuing through Thursday and possibly Friday, forecasters said.
That rain was not expected to be heavy enough to trigger mudslides or debris flows in burn scar areas, but forecasters said they were possible should pockets of heavy rain develop.
Orange County and the Inland Empire were expected to see up to threequarters of an inch to one-and-a-half inches of rainfall over several days, with totals up to two inches in foothill areas, said Matthew Moreland, National Weather Service meteorologist.
Los Angeles County was projected slightly lower, with anticipated totals between half an inch and one inch, Meteorologist Ryan Kittell said.
“Snow will probably be the biggest impact for this storm,” Kittell said.
That and anticipated cold weather led to a winter storm warning from 10 p.m. Tuesday to 10 p.m. Thursday across Southern California, Kittell said.
Snowfall could drop as low as 3,500 feet and areas above 4,500 feet could see six to 12 inches of snow, affecting both the Cajon Pass and the Grapevine, both forecasters said.
The rain will be beneficial for a region that’s seen less than half of its annual projections for Fall and Winter.
Before this storm, Chino has had 4-and-one-half inches of rain compared to an average of more than 10 inches, Moreland said.
“The storm will help, but not fix (the shortfall),” Kittell said.
This week’s storm was being brought on by a slow-moving, lowpressure system dropping down from the Oregon-California border, Moreland said.
“It’s not unusual to see this type of storm in March,” he said. “It’s a very cold system, but we’ve certainly had storms like this before in March.”
The storm was projected to end Friday, followed by a warming trend starting over the weekend, Moreland said.