Wind Gusts, Scattered Showers Forecast Near Palm Desert

By City News Service:

Winds and light showers will greet the Inland Empire starting Monday, according to a recent forecast from the National Weather Service.

An NWS forecast discussion issued Sunday afternoon said that a strong onshore flow will “produce gusty winds over the mountains and deserts again late Monday and Tuesday.”

A wind advisory will likely be needed Monday for the county’s mountainous areas.

The forecast said “isolated peak gusts of 60 miles per hour look possible on mainly the remote ridges and higher desert slopes by late Monday afternoon through Tuesday morning.”

This would follow a recent trend of windy conditions, which included gusts as high as 65 miles per hour in the San Gorgonio Pass earlier this week.

Light rain was also expected in the county, with a 30 percent chance of showers after 5 a.m. Monday morning and highs in the 60s.

Rainfall was forecast to be light and brief, but the greatest potential for rainfall would be in the coastal slopes of Riverside and San Diego County mountains, with a possibility of snow above 5,550 feet.

Rainfall amounts ranging from one-tenth to one-quarter inch were expected.