Happy Saturday morning, Central Coast. Overnight into early this morning the second portion of our storm made its way here. Most are starting the day with heavy rain and even some localized flooding. Before I dive in, here are a few links that I find helpful to have on hand through a storm.
To be honest, this is going to be a soggy weekend, and concerns with flooding, mudslides, and debris flows are a very active concern.
Starting off with alerts. A flood advisory is in place for most of Santa Barbara county through noon (I bet that will be extended). Minor flooding in low lying and poor drainage areas is expected.
The darker green shading in the above image is for a flood watch, that is in place through 10 p.m. tonight due to the ongoing flooding risk.
There is also a lingering high surf advisory and beach hazard statement in place for the beaches through 3 p.m. this afternoon.
Just as a note, it is advised to stay out of the water for three days following a large storm. With all the rain that is on the way that takes us to Thursday, when another storm is on the forecast.
Through the day the rain will continue to bring steady accumulations across the region as the upper level low rotates to our south. This brings in the consistent, heavy accumulations that are going right now and through the day. Here is what the radar is expected to look like at noon.
Into the evening there will be a short break for the south coast but with that rotating low pressure will bring the rain right back in overnight.
Sunday will be on the rainy side though, although it will be lighter accumulations overall. That being said it is likely still going to be raining for the start of the City to the Sea Half Marathon. Runners, you will need rain gear.
Sunday afternoon the rain will be more spotty with some showers scattered across the region.
Sunday night into earlyMonday morning the pattern will change drastically once again as a cold front sweeps in from the NW. This will clear out the mess of a system that we are dealing with today and bring us a band of heavier rain in the overnight hours and into the Monday morning commute.
Following that cold front we will see more scattered showers through the day.
Finally Tuesday we will get some drier conditions. They won't last though. More rain is on the way for Thursday of next week.
Turning to accumulations. We have already seen inches of rain across the region from Thursdays storm, and the south coast has picked up over two inches of rain in the last six hours alone.
From now through Monday night we are going to pick up another two inches of rain to the region. Here is what we can expect.
Stay weather aware, Central Coast!
-Vivian
