Northern California braced for week of rain and snow. Where’s the big storm experts predicted?
The wet and gloomy conditions meteorologists warned would roll into the Sacramento region this week have not lived up to the hype.
Besides a few drizzles here and there, the area has remained relatively dry.
Meteorologist Idamis Del Valle-Shoemaker with the National Weather Service said it could be difficult to forecast weather this time of year because the region is undergoing a “transitional period.” Rain was expected to wash over Northern California Tuesday through at least Saturday, but conditions have remained isolated along the coast.
“That’s why we’ve only seen only a few showers,” she said.
Scattered showers made their way up north of Interstate 80 around 10 p.m. Wednesday and persisted overnight across Northern California, the weather service wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
That was the extent of the rain.
The flurry of snow and rain expected throughout the week in the Tahoe region has also fallen short of its promise.
Del Valle-Shoemaker said because snow levels trended higher — between 7,000 and 8,000 feet — the potential for snow accumulation is limited. The weather service is still forecasting snow this week, with better chances of action Friday through Saturday.
Thunderstorms are also possible for Northern California between 2 p.m. and 11 p.m. Thursday, mainly in the Central Valley, including Sacramento, Stockton and Modesto.
Isolated thunderstorms will be possible this afternoon, with the best chances south of Interstate-80 (15-20% probability of thunderstorm development). When thunder roars, go indoors! #CAwx
Forecast: https://t.co/WjKBsJmkq2 pic.twitter.com/mJkMhWraVV— NWS Sacramento (@NWSSacramento) November 16, 2023
In Sacramento, there’s between a 40% and 90% chance of showers through Saturday, according to the weather service. Wind speeds are forecast to be around 6 mph with temperature highs in the low-to-high 60s.
Conditions are expected to return to normal Sunday morning with a high near 67 degrees and a low of 46 degrees.
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