The light rain we've been seeing the last two days will transition to steadier moderate to heavy rain this evening. North county areas will see rain intensify by 6/7pm, spreading south with the most widespread heavy rain between 8 and 11pm. By 10/11pm conditions will improve in the north county with intensity decreasing from north to south between 11pm and 1am. Between 6pm and 12am will be the greatest threat of flooding, with areas in the north county starting first and then spreading south.
A Flood Watch is in effect for all areas except the deserts until 4am Friday.
Many areas have already picked up an inch of rain with some mountain areas over 3 inches already. Additional rainfall through Friday is expected to range between .25 to 1.25" for the coast and valleys, 1 to 3" in the mountains and .10 to .50" in the deserts with the highest totals in the north county. Click here to see updated rainfall totals.
A Wind Advisory is in effect for the mountains and deserts until 4am Saturday for southwesterly winds of 20 to 30mph and gusts of 45 to 65mph. The coast and valleys will see gusts of 20 to 35mph through Friday.
Snow levels will drop overnight after the worst of the storm moves out with snow levels hovering near 5,000' into Friday which means the highest peaks of Mt. Laguna, Palomar Mountain and Lookout Mountain may see a dusting.
A High Surf Advisory starts at 4am Friday until 7am Saturday for waves of 7 to 10 feet, strong rip currents and minor coastal flooding in low-lying areas. Due to bacteria runoff from the rain, though, you should avoid going in the water for 72 hours after the rain ends.
Things dry out just in time for the holiday weekend with a mix of sun and clouds and gradual warming. By Sunday, temperatures will top out in the mid-60s at the coast, low to mid-70s inland, near 60 in the mountains, and mid-70s in the deserts. Fair weather sticks around into next week.
Unfortunately, this week's storm does NOT open the storm door to more rain as it does not look likely for any more storms this month. This week's rain, though, has knocked us out of the driest start to the water year on record, with rainfall in San Diego since October 1st now at .75", which is still over 5" shy of average. No change to California's drought this week, with San Diego remaining at level three drought or extreme drought.
Friday's Highs:
Coast: 57-63°
Inland: 55-63°
Mountains: 41-53°
Deserts: 66-69°
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