Special Weather Statementfrom the National Weather Service:
ORANGE COUNTY COASTAL AREAS- SAN DIEGO COUNTY COASTAL AREAS- SAN BERNARDINO AND RIVERSIDE COUNTY VALLEYS-THE INLAND EMPIRE- SAN DIEGO COUNTY VALLEYS- SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAINS- RIVERSIDE COUNTY MOUNTAINS- SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS- SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS- APPLE AND LUCERNE VALLEYS- COACHELLA VALLEY- SAN DIEGO COUNTY DESERTS- 400 AM PST SUN FEB 26 2006
...A STRONG PACIFIC STORM WILL AFFECT SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA MONDAY AND TUESDAY...
A MOISTURE LADEN...LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE EASTERN PACIFIC WILL BRING POTENTIALLY HEAVY RAIN AS IT TAPS INTO A DEEP LAYER OF SUBTROPICAL MOISTURE. LIGHT RAIN WILL BEGIN AS EARLY AS MONDAY...THEN INTENSIFY MONDAY EVENING AS SOUTHERLY WINDS DRAW MORE MOISTURE INTO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. THE BEST CHANCE OF HEAVY RAIN WILL BE MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY MORNING WHEN THE COLD FRONT SWEEPS ACROSS THE REGION.
RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL RANGE FROM ONE TO THREE INCHES IN THE COASTAL AND VALLEY AREAS...AND THREE TO SEVEN INCHES IN THE MOUNTAINS. THE SOUTH AND WEST FACING SLOPES WILL LIKELY RECEIVE THE MOST RAIN AND THERE WILL GENERALLY BE MORE RAIN IN THE NORTH AND LESS IN THE SOUTH. THE HIGH DESERTS SHOULD GET NEAR ONE AND A HALF INCHES OF RAIN WITH ABOUT AN INCH IN THE SOUTHERN DESERTS.
RAINFALL INTENSITIES MONDAY NIGHT COULD EXCEED ONE HALF INCH PER HOUR AT TIMES ACROSS LOWER ELEVATIONS...WITH RATES IN EXCESS OF ONE INCH PER HOUR POSSIBLE ACROSS FOOTHILL AND MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS. WITH SUCH HIGH RAINFALL RATES...FLASH FLOODING...MUD SLIDES AND DEBRIS FLOWS WILL BE LIKELY...ESPECIALLY IN AND BELOW RECENTLY BURNED AREAS AND ON STEEP TERRAIN. URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOODING WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE.
THE WARM TROPICAL AIR ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL KEEP SNOW LEVELS ABOVE RESORT LOCATIONS UNTIL MONDAY NIGHT SO THAT ANY SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE RESTRICTED TO THE HIGHEST PEAKS OF THE SAN BERNARDINO AND RIVERSIDE MOUNTAINS. AFTER THE PASSAGE OF THE COLD FRONT...THE SNOW LEVELS WILL DROP TO ABOUT 6500 FEET ON TUESDAY MORNING.
ON MONDAY...STRONG SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WINDS GUSTING TO 50 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS...AND WIND ADVISORIES WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED FOR SOME AREAS OF THE SAN BERNARDINO...RIVERSIDE AND SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS.
ALL INTERESTS SHOULD KEEP INFORMED ON THE LATEST DEVELOPMENT OF THIS STORM BY MONITORING THE LATEST WEATHER STATEMENTS. A FLOOD WATCH WILL LIKELY BE ISSUED FOR THE HEAVY RAIN EXPECTED TO FALL MONDAY NIGHT.
