Modesto could get quarter-inch of rain. Where do reservoirs stand as irrigation season ends?
The National Weather Service expects up to 0.25 inches of rain in the Modesto area, along with snow way up in its watershed.
The forecast said the storm would last from Monday morning, Nov. 6, through Tuesday.
The Modesto Irrigation District has recorded 0.2 inches of rain downtown since the July 1 start of its water year. An average year brings 12.17 inches, mostly from November through March.
The Weather Service forecast up to 8 inches of snow in higher reaches of the Tuolumne River watershed.
It’s main storage site, Don Pedro Reservoir, remains above-average thanks to abundant storms last winter and spring. MID shares it with the Turlock Irrigation District.
As of Monday, Don Pedro still held about 1.64 million acre-feet of water out of a capacity of 2.03 million. Irrigation season ended last week with plenty of carryover in case 2024 is dry.
New Melones Reservoir on the Stanislaus River stands at 1.89 million acre-feet out of a capacity of 2.42 million. It supplies the Oakdale and South San Joaquin irrigation districts and the federal Central Valley Project.
The Weather Service forecasts dry conditions Wednesday and Thursday, with high temperatures in the 60s. Friday has a chance of rain.
As of Monday morning, Highway 108 is closed near the Highway 108 summit at about 9,600 feet, the California Department of Transportation said. It was done as a precaution in advance of the storm.
Highway 120 was open through Yosemite National Park as of late morning. It was expected to close at 5 p.m. near the 10,000-foot Tioga Pass, again as a precaution.
