Southern Californians are bracing for a significant shift in weather patterns. The National Weather Service San Diego has issued alerts for critical fire conditions, followed by a cold, low-pressure system that is anticipated to bring showers, potential thunderstorms, and mountain snow by this weekend. According to the NWS San Diego, residents in coastal areas saw temperatures ranging between 66 to 73 degrees today, with western valleys and inland Orange County experiencing highs of 71 to 76 degrees. On the other hand, the mountains were notably warmer, expecting a 70 percent chance of seeing more than 12 inches of snow above 6000 feet.
The wind situation is of particular concern, with areas of “southwest to west winds for the mountains and deserts” on Saturday afternoon through to the night expected to reach gusts of 45 to 55 mph and isolated gusts up to 70 mph. The National Weather Service forecast discussion suggests a cooling trend with widespread showers starting Saturday night through Tuesday. This may provide some relief following the gusty Santa Ana winds and single-digit relative humidity contributing to the fire weather conditions. However, while diminishing, mountain and foothill areas will continue to face gusts of 40 to 50 mph until around sunrise.
This weekend’s snow is expected to be substantial, with the snow level starting around 4500 feet on Saturday night and rising to about 5000 feet on Sunday before falling again by Sunday night. Fire weather conditions remain critical throughout this morning, with a return of onshore flow and higher coastal humidity spreading inland later today. The looming winter storm has prompted the issuing of a Winter Storm Watch for various mountain regions in Southern California, indicating the possibility of significant snowfall and hazardous travel conditions…