California could start to dry out next week as the seemingly unending string of Pacific storms starts start to wind down after one last burst this weekend.
(Bloomberg) — California could start to dry out next week as the seemingly unending string of Pacific storms starts start to wind down after one last burst this weekend.
The state has been battered by rain, floods and deep snow that have killed at least 19 people over almost three weeks.
Heavy rain is forecast again on Saturday, but after that the storms will begin to taper off, said Bob Oravec, a senior branch forecaster with the US Weather Prediction Center. Storms will likely linger across Northern California into early next week.
“This is probably the last big day for California. It is definitely going to have heavy rain and snow inland,” Oravec said. “Most of the state on Tuesday will finally get a drying period.”
The pounding that California has received since late December has caused an estimated $30 billion in damages and economic losses, according to AccuWeather Inc.
Widespread power outages have also dogged the state as waterlogged trees have fallen and winds from the powerful atmospheric storms off the Pacific have torn down transmission lines. Flood watches are still posted across large areas of the state through Sunday.
Rain has left the ground so saturated that even weak storms are causing flooding. The Russian River near Guerneville, about 70 miles (112 km) north of San Francisco, is likely to reach flood stage again on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service’s California Nevada River Forecast Center.
Over the past 18 days, an average of 9 inches (23 centimeters) of rain has fallen statewide, with some locations getting more than they would in a year, said David Lawrence, a weather service meteorologist.
The forecast now is for the sun to return to Los Angeles on Tuesday and for just showers in Sacramento, the capital, with rain lingering in San Francisco.
“The prolonged drying starts on Tuesday and if we believe the models it could last over a week,” Oravec said.
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