Merced County saw record rain Wednesday. Here’s how much, and what’s on the way
Merced County saw record rainfall Wednesday, a complete turnaround after the month deceivingly was on track to be relatively dry.
Plus more rain is expected for the region for the rest of the week, according to the National Weather Service in Hanford.
According to NWS Meteorologist Brian Ochs, Merced on Wednesday recorded record rainfall of 1.42 inches. The previous record was 0.63 inches in 1995 for the same date.
Between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, over a 24 hour period Merced airport recorded about 1.3 inches of precipitation, according to NWS Meteorologist Modesto Vasquez. Los Banos saw about 2.11 inches of rain while the San Luis Reservior saw about 2.42 inches.
The Merced area is expected to see more showers move over the area Friday as colder air moves, in but showers could end by late Friday afternoon.
Vazquez said the area could see a dry period for the weekend with precipitation returning Monday night into Tuesday morning, as another cold system moves through the area. The Merced area can expect about .3 to .6 of an inch of precipitation for the remainder of the day Thursday, with about a quarter to a half inch of rain overnight.
Today Merced can expect to see a high temperature of about 52 degrees. Friday’s high is expected to be about the same with a low of 36 degrees on Saturday morning, according to Vasquez.
Yosemite and Mariposa County
The Mariposa area saw about 3.23 inches of rain between Wednesday night and Thursday morning with Wawona and Midpines recording about 2.29 inches and 3.49 inches respectively. According to Vazquez, Tuolumne Meadows recorded about 33 inches of snowfall in the past 24 hours.
Vasquez said another 1-2 inches of precipitation is possible in the Mariposa area for the remainder of Wednesday with another 0.5 to one inch possible overnight. On Friday, another .25 inches is possible, Vasquez said.
Mariposa temperatures are expected to reach about 43 degrees Wednesday with a low of about 37 overnight. Vasquez said Friday’s high in Mariposa is expected to be about 45 degrees with a low of about 32 degrees, before increasing to about 50 degrees on Saturday.
Higher elevations in the Yosemite area could see snow at about 5,000 feet Thursday, with up to 24 inches of snow possible and some rainfall is expected at the Valley floor. Tonight the area can expect about 12-16 inches of snow in the higher country with the snow level lowering to about 4,000 feet.
The Yosemite National Park area on Friday could see scattered showers with a possibility of about 1-3 inches of precipitation, Vazquez said.
Thursday’s high in the Yosemite Valley is expected to be about 40 degrees with a low of about 31 degrees. Friday’s high is expected to reach about 39 degrees before dropping to a low of about 27 degrees into Saturday morning.
Vasquez said the Grapevine is expected to see precipitation by late Thursday afternoon with heavier amounts expected through the evening and into the night.
A winter storm warning has been issued for the Grapevine as wind gusts continue to blow through the area since yesterday. Wind gusts along the freeway have reached about 35-45 mph.
“We do have a wind advisory for south of Bakersfield to the south end of the valley,” Vasquez said.
This story was originally published January 28, 2021 at 12:08 PM.