Large Storm Heads To Coachella Valley: How Much Rain Will We Get?

PALM DESERT, CA — The first significant storm of 2024 is heading into the Inland Empire through Monday, with over an inch of precipitation possible in some locations.

Several troughs of low pressure will spin across the region over a roughly three-day period, producing rain and thunderstorms, the National Weather Service said.

"While intermittent rounds of showers look likely through much of the weekend, there appear to be two favored time frames for heavier and more widespread shower activity: Saturday and Monday," according to the NWS. "Preliminary rainfall totals through the duration of this event look to be a broad swath of 1-2 inches across the coasts and inland valleys, 2-4 inches across the mountains and roughly .25-1 inch across the deserts."

Forecasters said any major snowfall will be above 7,000 feet during most of the storm series. However, temperatures may come down enough Saturday night "for snow to fall down to as low as 5,500-6,000 feet, though any accumulations would be very light and confined to grassy surfaces."

Highways through the San Bernardino National Forest, including state Route 243 through Idyllwild-Pine-Cove, were expected to remain passable.

Prognostication charts published by the NWS indicated the highest likelihood of thunderstorms is Monday morning and afternoon as the tail end of the last trough trundles eastward.

Meteorologists anticipated a flood watch being posted for Monday.

The weather will start to clear Monday night, followed by mostly sunny and drier conditions going into midweek.

In the Riverside metropolitan area, the highs will generally hold in the low 60s for the weekend, with overnight lows in the low 50s.

In the Coachella Valley, the daytime high will creep toward 70 Saturday and Sunday, and lows will be in the low 50s, while in the Temecula Valley, the temperature band will be virtually identical to Riverside metro.

In the Coachella Valley, here is what meteorologists are predicting:

Saturday
A slight chance of showers after 10am. Partly sunny, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming southeast around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Saturday Night
A chance of showers, mainly before 4am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. North wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Sunday
A chance of showers, mainly after 10am. Partly sunny, with a high near 66. East wind around 5 mph becoming calm. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Sunday Night
A chance of showers before 4am, then rain likely after 4am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

Monday
Rain likely, then rain and possibly a thunderstorm after 10am. High near 64. Chance of precipitation is 80%.

Monday Night
Rain likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 10pm, then a chance of showers after 10pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51.

Tuesday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 69.

Tuesday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 48.

Wednesday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 69.

Wednesday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 48.

Thursday
Sunny, with a high near 71.