SAN FRANCISCO – Heavy rain and flooding continue to plague California as yet another atmospheric river takes aim at the Golden State Wednesday, with some rivers threatening major flooding impacts.
This latest storm will focus the bulk of its rainfall in Northern California, but flooding concerns linger across much of the state in the wake of the previous storm Monday and Tuesday that brought over a foot of rain to some spots and some 300 reports of flooding.
Emergency managers are focusing attention on the Salinas River in Central California, where the river is forecast to crest near or beyond major flood stage by Thursday, leading to significant flooding impacts in the area around Salinas.
According to the FOX Forecast Center, the forecast crest as of Wednesday morning of 27.5 feet at Spreckels would be the second-highest level measured and could lead to major flooding in the towns of Castroville, Soledad, Gonzales, Chualar, Spence and Spreckels.
The Monterey County Sheriff has issued some evacuation orders in the region.
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In addition, tens of thousands of acres of agricultural land will flood, leaving primary and secondary roads impassable across the region.
The town of Salinas is forecast to escape flooding unless the river rises more than currently forecast.
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Elsewhere, Flood watches remain in effect for much of Northern California, where Wednesday’s rain is expected to add another 1 to 3 inches to the soggy totals already collected since the parade of storms began just after Christmas. Rainfall amounts will decrease as you head south from the San Francisco Bay Area.
On the other hand, Southern California, where two-day rainfall totals of 3 to 10 inches were common through Tuesday and some of the mountains received over 15 inches of rain, will finally get a break. Dry weather is expected through Friday, though more rain returns for the weekend.
Up in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, the snow level will be rising throughout Wednesday, and by Wednesday night, it will climb above pass level, according to the FOX Forecast Center. Another 1 to 2 feet will be possible in those highest peaks through Friday, with less than a foot falling at pass level.
Waves will gradually increase along the Northern California coast as the storm approaches, reaching 20 to 25 feet from Thursday into Friday morning.
While this next atmospheric river is on the weaker side, more storms with heavier rain are in the forecast for the weekend and again next week.
Gusty winds reaching over 40 mph will return as well, and more trees are likely to topple in the saturated soil, keeping power crews busy.
Yet another potent storm is forecast to strike California next week, though these next storms appear weaker and colder than the previous storms.
Cooler air would allow more snow to fall in the mountains instead of rain and would limit higher-elevation rain runoff. The FOX Forecast Center said that because of these lower snow levels and the greatest cumulative rain forecast to occur in far northwestern California, which hasn’t been quite as wet, it appears likely that another more widespread and destructive flood scenario will be avoided, though some flooding threats still remain.
With the cooler air, extreme snowfalls are likely to return to the Sierra Nevada.
The FOX Forecast Center predicts another 60 to 100 inches of snow will fall in the next seven days, which will continue to add to a snowpack that is more than double where it is usually this time of year.
Due to the weight of the snow, avalanche danger will remain high.
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But drier weather lurks. Long-range forecasts suggest a shift in the weather pattern in about 9 to 10 days, which will bring an extended stretch of mostly dry weather to California and relief from the train of deadly storms.
As of Tuesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said the series of powerful storms has claimed the lives of at least 17 people, which is more than wildfires over the past two years combined.