The tail end of a forceful winter storm continued dousing the San Diego area with scattered showers early Thursday, but sunny days will be here again.
The saturated region has a dry weekend ahead after five days of heavy rain and accumulating mountain snow, forecasters predict.
The period of dry weather and slowly warming temperatures is expected to continue into the middle of next week, forecasters said. But more wet weather could arrive around Feb. 17-18, the National Weather Service advised.
As of the late morning Thursday, the latest wet and blustery atmospheric system had delivered anywhere from a few tenths of an inch to more than eight inches of precipitation across the county, according to the NWS.
Among the top local rainfall totals from this week’s storms as of shortly before 10:30 a.m. Thursday, according to the NWS:
- 8.13 inches in San Onofre
- 6.66 at Camp Pendleton
- 5.22 in Fallbrook, and
- 5.21 in Mesa Grande.
Those areas that received more than four inches of rain: 4.61 at Henshaw Dam; 4.46 in Skyline Ranch; 4.55 at Lake Wohlford; 4.44 in Bonsall; 4.34 in Deer Springs; 4.27 at Rainbow Camp; 4.17 in Oceanside, and 4.1 in Santa Ysabel.
Communities that had three inches or more of rain: 3.94 inches on Mount Woodson; 3.87 in Valley Center; 3.81 in Alpine; 3.64 in Carlsbad; 3.63 in Couser Canyon; 3.5 in Escondido; 3.43 in National City; 3.38 in Ramona; 3.37 in Vista; 3.31 at Miramar Lake, on Otay Mountain and in San Diego Country Estates; 3.3 in Santee; 3.26 in Barona; 3.25 in Echo Dell; 3.21 in Poway; 3.16 in Granite Hills; 3.08 in La Mesa; 3.02 at Cactus County Park, and 3.0 in Campo.
The five-day rainfall totals that fell below three inches: 2.99 in Harbison Canyon; 2.91 in Flinn Springs; 2.88 in Encinitas; 2.83 in Kearny Mesa; 2.82 in San Marcos; 2.79 in San Miguel; 2.74 in Oak Grove; 2.7 at Montgomery Field; 2.68 at San Diego International Airport; 2.65 in Rancho Bernardo; 2.6 at Brown Field and in Dulzura; 2.45 at Naval Air Station North Island and Point Loma; 2.39 in Mission Valley; 2.29 in Rincon Springs and Warner Springs, and 1.7 in Chula Vista.
And, the very few places with an inch or less: 0.61 in Ocotillo Wells; 0.42 in Borrego Springs, and 0.17 in Agua Caliente.
Local snowfall measurements included six to eight inches on Mount Laguna; 6 inches on Birch Hill and Palomar Mountain; 4 inches in Julian; 3 inches in Descanso and Pine Hills, and 2 inches in Wynola.
This week’s storm arrived in the aftermath of a spate of historically heavy downpours that left roadways, commercial districts and residential neighborhoods underwater in parts of the region two weeks ago.
The wettest day, Jan. 22, delivered the highest 24-hour rainfall amounts in San Diego since 1850, according to the NWS.
The inundation, which washed away many a parked car and heavily damaged or destroyed many homes, prompted the city and county of San Diego, along with Gov. Gavin Newsom, to declare states of emergency.
Though the latest storm has resulted in no reports of heavy damage locally, the earlier flooding prompted Newsom on Wednesday to seek an official disaster declaration from President Joe Biden.
The city of San Diego has provided temporary housing for displaced residents who were staying in the city’s temporary shelter at Balboa Park’s Municipal Gym.
That shelter is now closed, and as of Wednesday, the city and San Diego Housing Commission had referred more than 600 residents, with 159 pets, for temporary placement in hotel rooms, including at a recently acquired hotel property in the Midway area. In total, assistance is being provided for nearly 200 households.
The city’s Local Assistance Center will remain open at the Mountain View Community Recreation Center through the weekend. Hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. City residents impacted by the storm may seek rides to the center at no cost by calling the United Taxi Workers of San Diego at 619-280-4444.
– City News Service
Updated at 5:40 p.m. Feb. 8, 2024.