A Pacific storm blowing over the region is expected to produce on-and-off showers through Sunday with another storm on the horizon set to drench the Southland with more rain next week, forecasters said.
Preliminary rainfall totals in the 24-hour period prior to 3 p.m. were 0.57 inches in Riverside, 0.67 inches in Temecula and 0.43 in Beaumont. The desert regions remained mostly dry.
Apart from an increased number of freeway spinouts, no major damage or injuries have been reported due to this weekend’s weather as of Saturday afternoon.
According to the National Weather Service, the current storm will give way to a break in the clouds on Monday until a second Pacific storm approaching from the Central Coast brings light rainfall as early as Tuesday, with heavier showers expected on Wednesday into Thursday.
Along with colder weather, the second storm is forecasted to drop anywhere between one to three inches of rain, the NWS said.
Fire officials said it was too early to tell whether the midweek storm will pose flooding or debris flow dangers.
A wide area skirting the eastern boundary of the Cleveland National Forest was left exposed to potential flood and mud damage because of the 23,000-acre Holy Fire in August. The arson blaze denuded steep terrain below Santiago Peak, permitting water to flow unchecked onto lower slopes where subdivisions are situated.
Heavy rainfall on Valentine’s Day resulted in significant flooding, prompting street closures and evacuations. A homeless woman died Feb. 14 when she was swept away by a heavy water flow in a concrete stormwater channel in Riverside, and several homes in Lake Elsinore were damaged by the downpour.