A major storm is headed to California this week, expected to bring several inches of rain to some parts of the state, the National Weather Service reported Nov. 13.
As of Monday afternoon, meteorologists were backing off calling the storm an “atmospheric river,” which would typically dump substantial amounts of rain from the tropics.
This week’s storm is expected to linger offshore and send three bursts of moisture into the state starting Monday night in the San Francisco Bay Area and Wednesday in Los Angeles County.
“We are not calling it an atmospheric river any longer,” weather service Meteorologist Roger Gass based in Monterey, California, told The Epoch Times. “We’re expecting this low-pressure system to stall offshore and kind of meander around for a few days. It won’t have as much rain.”
In the San Francisco region, residents should get a half-inch to about 1.5 inches of rain over the next week. The coastal cities, such as Santa Cruz and Monterey, should get more than that, Mr. Gass said.
If the storm comes ashore, it could start to sprinkle beginning Monday night in the north bay area of San Francisco and remain confined north of the Santa Cruz Mountains. On Tuesday, the area is expected to be partly cloudy to the south of San Francisco. Rain is possible Wednesday through Thursday, and again Friday through Saturday, according to forecasters.
Temperatures in the area will range from the 50s to 60s inland and upper 50s at the coast, Mr. Gass reported. Overnight low temperatures are forecast to be in the upper 40s until Thursday when things should warm up into the lower 50s.
If the storm remains offshore, the region might not get any rain, Mr. Gass said.
In the Los Angeles County region, light rain is expected Wednesday afternoon and increasing through Thursday, according to weather service Meteorologist David Sweet in Oxnard, California. The storm will take a short break and bring rain to the area again Friday and Saturday, Mr. Sweet reported.
Total rainfall from Wednesday through Saturday will be from one to three inches, with the most near the south-facing slopes of the San Gabriel and Los Padres Mountain ranges, according to the weather service.
There is also a potential for flooding and for snow above 8,000 feet, the weather service reported, and southerly winds during the storm could gust up to 50 miles per hour.
Temperatures are expected to drop about 10 degrees from a high of 78 and low of 55 on Tuesday to a high of 69 degrees on Wednesday and a low of 57. Highs should remain in the mid to upper 60s until Friday, with the lows continuing in the upper 50s.
The storm is dropping out of the Gulf of Alaska, where it caused snowfall totaling 12 to 22 inches in Anchorage last week, the National Weather Service told the Anchorage Daily News. Officials closed schools and widespread power outages were reported.
