After funnel cloud and hail, what’s next for Merced County? Storms continue this week
A storm cell that blew through the Valley produced thunder and lightning as well as hail and funnel clouds in and around Merced County, according to the National Weather Service.
A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for Merced, Madera and Fresno counties near Dos Palos and Los Banos on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service San Joaquin Valley office in Hanford. A storm cell that tracked through the southeast portion of Merced County produced up to 1 inch of rain reported in the Los Banos area, according to meteorologist Jim Brusda with the weather service.
Brusda said dime-sized hail was reported in Dos Palos and a funnel cloud was reported about one mile east of Dos Palos. A funnel cloud was also detected near Firebaugh. An EF-1 tornado which produced winds of up to 90 mph touched down in Tuolumne County on Saturday about six miles southwest of Tuttletown. According to Brusda, there were no reports of tornadoes in Merced County on Sunday.
“That part of the county was hit harder than other parts of Merced County,” said Brusda.
Flood stages expected this week
Merced saw about one-quarter to half an inch of rain on Sunday with the Stevinson area recording about .48 inches of rain. According to Brusda, the Merced River was recorded to be at about 70 feet in Stevinson Monday morning and is forecast to rise above 72 feet Tuesday evening into Wednesday morning. Flood stage is 71 feet.
On Monday morning, Bear Creek was recorded to be at 13.5 feet and is forecast to rise just above the flood stage of 23 feet late Tuesday and into Wednesday morning, according to forecasters.
The Merced area is expected to see the warmest temperatures of the week Monday with a high in the upper 60s. Brusda said the area could see a chance of thunderstorms throughout the day with the best chance of precipitation occurring after midnight.
“Late tonight and Tuesday is the heaviest band of precipitation,” said Brusda.
Temperatures are expected to reach a high in the low 60s Tuesday with a 100% chance of rain, according to the weather service. Rain is expected to continue into Wednesday with a 30% chance of rain before clearing up Wednesday night.
Valley areas could see as much as 1-1.5 inches from Monday night though Wednesday morning, according to Brusda. Some mountain areas northeast of Merced could see as much as 3-4 inches of rain with snow at elevations above 7,000 feet.
The Merced area is expected to see a high temperature in the low 60s on Thursday and a high in the mid 60s on Friday with a 30% chance of rain, according to forecasters.
Mariposa rainfall, forecast
Rainfall in the Mariposa area was not overly heavy with about 0.4 inches recorded on Sunday about 30 miles northeast of Merced. Even without heavy rains, the recent rainfall is enough to cause problems and concerns of flash flooding and mudslides, according to Brusda.
According to the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office, a shelter in place order was issued for the Foresta area on Saturday with access to the area compromised. According to sheriff’s office spokesperson Kristie Mitchell, the order was lifted Monday morning. Mitchell said the order was prompted due to a mudslide and rockslide in the park as well a mudslide and washout on Highway 120. Caltrans has since established a one-way traffic control on Highway 120, according to Mitchell.
A shelter in place order was also issued for the area of Triangle Park Road and the nearby neighborhoods due to a bridge culvert failure along a road which is not maintained by the county, according to Mitchell. That order was expected to be lifted Monday.
“We’ve had damage countywide, but as far as access for people and shelter in place, those are the only two areas,” Mitchell said.
According to Mitchell, residents are encouraged to sign up for emergency alerts and MSO alerts as well as to seek information from official sources and to pay attention to all warnings that are issued.
This story was originally published March 13, 2023 at 12:20 PM.