Spring Storm To Bring Showers, Cool Temps And Mountain Snow to SoCal

LOS ANGELES, CA — A storm will put a damper on the weekend, bringing spotty showers across the Southland and a dusting of snow to the local mountains, according to the National Weather Service.

The Pacific storm isn't expected to pack much of a punch for Southern California, but it is likely to deliver the proverbial cherry on top for California's snowpack heading into the warmer spring months.

The jet stream from the Pacific has shifted south, bringing mountain snow and around a half-inch of rain to Southern California with the potential for sporadic downpours, creating havoc on the roads, according to forecasters.

"This won't be a major rainmaker in Southern California; totals for the entire event are likely to be 0.50 of an inch or less except for in a few mountain areas," Meteorologist Heather Zehr told AccuWeather. "The passes in Southern California aren't likely to see much if any, snow, but some accumulation is likely above 5,000 feet."

The storm is expected to bring showers on and off all weekend along with a drop in temperatures — 6 to 12 degrees below normal, according to the National Weather Service. Temperatures are expected to drop to the lows 60s all along the coast from Malibu to San Diego and even lower to the mid-to-upper 50s in the inland areas including Mission Viejo, and Temecula, according to the National Weather Service.

The rain is expected to move in Saturday with light showers and heavier downpours and snow levels dropping to 4,000 on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. The snow could cause traffic jams in the Grapevine and hazardous conditions on mountain roads.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm watch for San Bernardino and Palomar Mountain Saturday morning through Sunday. The storm may bring up to a foot of snow and 70 mph wind gusts to the Big Bear area, the National Weather Service warned.

The spring snowstorm is a welcome development for California's snowpack. The Sierra Nevada snowpack ranges from 91 percent of normal in the South to 112 percent of normal in the northern part of the snake as of March 20.

See Also: Pitiful To Plentiful: CA Snowpack Reaches Surprising Benchmark

With the state's snowpack bolstered and reservoirs largely full, California is not expected to experience water shortages over the next year.