More Rain Headed To Desert For Weekend

A strong Pacific storm will bring rain and a possibility of thunderstorms to Riverside County this weekend but probably not until Sunday afternoon, forecasters said today.

The storm was centered about 650 miles west of Portland, Ore., early this morning and expected to move through southwestern California starting Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

“The main band of precipitation is expected to move into Orange County and far southwestern San Bernardino County by late Sunday morning, spreading south and east into Riverside and San Diego counties Sunday afternoon through Sunday evening,” according to an NWS advisory. “Widespread rain will turn to showers Sunday night and linger into Monday.”

Temperatures this weekend are not expected to drop as low as they did during last weekend’s storm, when the local snow level dropped to just below 3,000 feet. According to the Weather Service, Riverside County’s snow level will start out around 7,000 feet Sunday and drop to 5,000 feet by Sunday night.

Three to six inches of snowfall is possible in mountains areas above 6,000 feet and one to four inches is possible between 5,000 and 6,000 feet.

Local wind gusts of 45 to 55 miles per hour are possible in mountain areas, mainly on Sunday. There’s also a slight chance of thunderstorms Sunday afternoon and evening as cold air aloft moves over the area, according to the NWS.

Rainfall from this weekend’s storm is expected to range from 0.3 to 0.75 inches of rain in valley areas to 0.75 to 1.25 inches in the mountains.