California is prepping for another atmospheric river, as strong winds, flooding rains and feet of snow are again set to clobber the Golden State, which hasn’t seen much of the golden sun this winter and early spring.
This is the West Coast’s 14th atmospheric river to make landfall since fall, according to the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes.
The system will approach the West late Monday, bringing the chance for flooding rain and feet of mountain snow.
Just like the last rain and wind-maker to pummel California, the center of the storm will linger off the coast and focus high winds and heavy rain into already waterlogged portions of the state.
The slow-moving weather system will ride down the coast and bring precipitation to Southern California midweek. The FOX Forecast Center expects the storm to weaken slightly as it heads south.
Northern California will see clouds filter in later in the day on Monday. The rain will start in the evening, and by Tuesday morning, the heaviest rain will fall as a cold front sweeps through. With cold air filling in behind the storm, the area could see thunderstorms late Tuesday into Wednesday morning. The showers will taper off later in the day.
Strong winds will accompany the heavy rain. With the already saturated ground, officials expect more falling trees as the roots can’t anchor in the wet soil.
Power companies report that they are planning to stage repair crews in advance of the storm, as some families were out of power for up to a week from the previous storm. Road crews are busy shoring up the landslides that have closed down freeways.
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Along the coast and across valleys could see several inches of rain with 35 to 55 mph wind gusts. Coastal mountains and foothills will see more, with up to 4 inches of rain expected, according to the NWS.
An influx of warm air along with the tropical atmospheric river will warm up the initial blast of precipitation. Coastal mountains could see 1 to 6 inches of snow and 8 to 10 inches at higher elevations.
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Tuesday travel will be treacherous across the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Hurricane-force wind gusts will blow around snow and could knock down trees. Locations above 6,000 feet could see up to three feet of snow, while elevations below could see up to a foot.
The Los Angeles area will have to deal with gusty offshore winds through Monday morning as the Santa Ana winds pick up.
Late Tuesday through Wednesday, the rain will accompany the strong winds. Coastal and valley areas could see up to an inch of rain. Higher elevations will see 1 to 2 inches. The NWS is concerned that thunderstorms could develop late Wednesday and Thursday and drop a lot of rain quickly, leading to flash flooding and landslide potential.
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