Southern California residents woke up to chilly weather and showers Monday. But weather experts predict the rest of the week will be dry.
The rain was due to a weather system that developed over Northern California and moved south down the coast into Southern California on Sunday night and Monday morning, according to Joe Sirard, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard, which covers Los Angeles County.
Sirard said Monday morning he expected the San Fernando and San Gabriel Valleys would receive one-third of an inch of rain and downtown Los Angeles and the coastal areas would receive near that amount as well.
Orange County was expected to get one-fourth to one-third of an inch of rain while the Inland Empire was expected to see less overall, said Philip Gonsalves, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in San Diego, which covers Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
“Depends on where you are too. The further you are, the less you will get,” Gonsalves said. Across the Inland Empire, he said the rainfall amount could range from one-tenth of an inch to two-tenths of an inch. The southern part was forecast to receive less than one-tenth of an inch.
By 3 p.m Monday, Huntington Beach saw 0.19 inch of rain, Garden Grove received 0.20, Temecula 0.16, San Bernardino 0.14 and the Riverside Airport 0.03.
As of 4 p.m. Monday, 0.30 inch of rain fell in downtown Los Angeles, 0.18 at the Long Beach airport, 0.25 in Chatsworth, 0.31 in Northridge and 0.02 in San Gabriel.
The Southland has not seen a lot of rain.
The amount of rain that fell from Oct. 1, 2020 to March 14, 2021 in Santa Ana was 4.11 inches, meteorologist Casey Oswant said. She also works at the National Weather Service in San Diego. In comparison, the rainfall from Oct. 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020 was 9 inches.
She said the city of Riverside saw 4.28 inches from Oct. 1, 2020 to March 14, 2021 and 8.11 inches from Oct. 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020.
Downtown Los Angeles received a total of 5.50 inches of rain from Oct. 1, 2020 to March 14, 2021, Sirard said. From Oct. 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020, the amount of rainfall was 9.69 inches.
“It’s been a very dry year,” Sirard said. “It’s just the way weather patterns are. A weak La Nina may have contributed.”
Sirard also pointed out that Northern California had a lot more rain than Southern California in comparison. The last significant rain the Southland saw was in late January, he said.
Along with Monday’s showers came gusty winds, snow and cold temperatures.
There is a high wind warning until 3 a.m. Tuesday, March 16, for the San Gorgonio Pass near Banning, the mountain areas in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, Apple and Lucerne Valleys, Crestline, Lake Arrowhead, Big Bear City, Big Bear Lake, Running Springs, Wrightwood, Victorville, Hesperia, Indio, Cathedral City, Coachella and Borrego Springs.
West winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts to 60 mph are expected. Wind-prone areas like mountain passes and valleys could see gusts of 85 mph, meteorologist Liz Schenk said.
Snow fell Monday in the San Bernardino and Riverside mountains. A winter weather advisory is in effect until 3 a.m. Tuesday for the mountain areas including Crestline, Lake Arrowhead, Big Bear City, Big Bear Lake, Running Springs, Wrightwood, and Idyllwild-Pine Cove. Drivers were advised to plan for difficult travel conditions.
Additional snow accumulations of 2 to 4 inches above 3,500 feet, with localized amounts up to 12 inches above 6,000 feet, were expected, according to the Weather Service.
There is also a winter weather advisory until 9 a.m. Tuesday for the Los Angeles County mountains. Weather experts expect light to moderate snow falling around 3,000 feet and winds gusting up to 55 mph. These areas could get up to 6 inches of snow. Light snow was expected to fall on the 5 Freeway over the Grapevine and on Angeles Crest Highway.
Parts of the Inland Empire were expected to see temperatures drop to the mid-30s to low 30s on Monday night, Gonsalves said. The San Bernardino mountains will be colder. He said the low for Big Bear will be about 15 degrees.
On Monday, Santa Ana hit a high of 57 degrees and a low of 52, Riverside saw a high of 54 degrees and a low of 49 and San Bernardino reached a high of 54 degrees and a low of 50.
Oswant said for Orange County and the Inland Empire it will be warmer on Tuesday through the rest of the week. Tuesday, Riverside and Santa Ana are expected to see a high of 60 degrees.
In Los Angeles County, the mercury hit a high of 57 degrees and a low of 51 degrees in downtown LA and the Long Beach airport, Chatsworth saw a high of 55 and a low of 48, Northridge was also chilly at 56 and a low of 47 and San Gabriel posted a high of 55 and a low of 50.
It will be clear and partly cloudy Tuesday in the Los Angeles area. It will be partly to mostly cloudy, at times, from Tuesday night to Sunday, Sirard said.
It looks like the rest of the week will be dry, he added.
Temperatures will climb to the 60s in much of Los Angeles County on Tuesday, the Weather Service said.