A series of severe winter storms propelled by a merging of powerful atmospheric rivers and fueled by El Niño have rocked Southern California, setting daily records for rainfall across the lower region of the state.
Downtown Los Angeles set a record of 4.10 inches Sunday, breaking the previous 1927 daily record of 2.55 inches. Long Beach airport set a record of 1.50 inches, and Santa Barbara airport received 2.39 inches of rain, breaking the previous record of half an inch in 1990.
But as the storm moves inland, Arizonans can expect weaker systems and less rain. The Phoenix area is on track to receive anywhere from half an inch to an inch, far less than what’s fallen in Southern California, though still close to a month’s worth in one hit.
Matt Salerno, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Phoenix, said Phoenix won’t get the same storms and rain totals as much of Southern California simply because of the topography.
“Just due to the fact that we have mountainous terrain around the city, and we are in a low spot of the Valley, the clouds and rain tend to form around us,” Salerno said. “As the winds start blowing from the south, those clouds and precipitation move away from the Valley up towards the mountains.”