Photo: FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP / Getty Images
A powerful storm that headed northwest earlier in the week fell in California on Wednesday, preparing the region to receive rain and snow that alleviate drought , and rainfall could set records on Christmas Eve.
Increasing amounts of moisture moved ashore Wednesday with snow developing across the entire Cordillera de Sierra Nevada.
This is something out of the ordinary! Heavy downpours during this weekend in Los Angeles, California, will be an atypical event as there is hardly any rain in this region.
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This will be the beginning of an extended stretch of humid weather for the Southwest, according to AccuWeather’s leading long-range meteorologist Paul Pastelok.
Wednesday night , much needed rain continued to fall across the California coast, including San Francisco and San Jose, California.
Snow also started in the Sierra Nevada, as well as parts of the Klamath Mountains. By the end of Wednesday, more than an inch of rain had fallen in Blue Canyon, California.
expand further east into the Rockies, which will help build up a layer of snow but will hamper vacation travel efforts, ”said Pastelok.
Rain will continue in Sacramento and San Francisco on Thursday, and is also expected to spread south to Los Angeles and eventually San Diego.
Heavy rains will continue to hit these areas Thursday night and also Friday.
“Across Southern California, Friday is going to be downright miserable for those who drive to family reunions and church services or pick up that last minute Christmas tree, ”said AccuWeather meteorologist Reneé Duff.
“Heavy rains are expected to spread over places like Los Angeles and San Diego, which e can cause water to stagnate on roads and significantly reduce visibility, ”Duff warned.
Excess rain could even lead to localized floods and landslides.
Authorities recommend that motorists leave extra space between vehicles, be aware of their surroundings and slow down.
Safe driving can help prevent countless accidents during the holiday season.
By Monday morning, up to 8 feet of snow is expected to have fallen at elevations highest in the Sierra Nevada, with at least 3-6 inches of snow in places like Medford, Oregon and Reno, Nevada.
This could cause Major travel delays, especially on slippery pass roads.
Warnings have been issued Winter storm forecasts for parts of northern and central California, including the Lake Tahoe area of California’s Sierra Nevada.
However, snow is not the only precipitation that could be measured in inches as of this event.
“General rainfall of 1 to 2 inches is forecast with locally higher amounts for the end of the week in Southern California, which could be the rainiest Christmas Eve on record in some cities, ”Duff said.
One of those cities would be Los Angeles , home to nearly 4 million people, which has only had three Christmas Eve where downtown has seen more than 2 inches of rain since record keeping began: 1892, 1916 Y 1971.
“2021 could conver Falling in the room depending on the exact time and intensity of the rains, and at least an inch of rain in the city seems like a safe bet, ”said Duff.
This may even seem reminiscent of when the city received more than 2 inches of rain earlier in the month, the 14 December.
Friday’s rain could be even heavier south of the City of Angels, particularly around San Diego.
“In San Diego, the 24 December 1940, ranks first with the highest amount of precipitation on Christmas Eve with 1. 47 inches of rain, ”Duff said.
Forecasters predict this amount has a good chance of falling on Friday.
Although San Diego reported just under one p of rain with the last storm on 14, the amounts of Rainfall remains around 66% of the average from December to Wednesday.
While all this rain can be a nuisance for one of the busiest travel times of the year, it could also help alleviate some of the drought conditions that plague the Southwest.
Almost 30% of California is experiencing exceptional drought conditions, according to the United States Drought Monitor. More than 80% of the state suffers from extreme drought. Although Los Angeles is on track to receive typical December rains, the city has received only half its annual average so far.
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