The first day of winter brought light showers to Santa Barbara County Wednesday and residents can expect the rain and partly cloudy skies to continue through the holiday weekend.
Up to an inch of rain could fall in South Coast areas through Sunday, according to meteorologist Kurt Kaplan from the National Weather Service in Oxnard.
Between 1.5 and 2 inches of rain is expected in the Santa Ynez Mountains, he said.
“There’s always a chance of an isolated thunderstorm and you could get higher rainfall rates,” Kaplan said.
Kaplan said the rain should not complicate travel plans for motorists in the area, but “there could be localized flooding if it gets heavy.”
Scattered periods of rain are in the forecast for Wednesday night and Thursday morning will have a 20-percent chance of rain and cloudy skies, before clearing up with highs in the low- to mid-60s.
“It’s going to become sunny in the afternoon,” Kaplan said.
Southeast winds are expected to pick up 15 to 25 mph on Friday afternoon and heavy rain is expected Friday afternoon and night, Kaplan said.
“The rain is going to increase and have a decent amount,” Kaplan said.
Lingering showers are expected Saturday morning, with a 20-percent chance of rain throughout the day. Partly cloudy skies and overnight temperatures could drop to the upper 30s Christmas Eve.
Sunday is predicted to be partly cloudy with a 20-percent chance of rain throughout the county, with Christmas temperatures reaching the mid- to upper-50s.
Monday’s forecast calls for mostly cloudy sky with a 20-percent chance of rain all day and overnight.
“We predict a slight chance of rain,” Kaplan said. “It’s still a little to early to see but the possibility may go up. After Monday, it should be partly cloudy.”
As overnight temperatures are predicted to reach the low to mid-30s to mid-40s over the holiday weekend, members of the Freedom Warming Centers are opening their doors to people seeking shelter.
Shelters will be open from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. on Friday through Sunday.
Centers are located at Trinity Episcopal Church (1500 State St. in Santa Barbara), University United Methodist Church (892 Camino Del Sur in Goleta), Carpinteria Veterans Memorial Building (941 Walnut Ave. in Carpinteria), Peace Lutheran Church (1000 W. Ocean Ave. in Lompoc) and the Salvation Army Social Services Department (200 W. Cook St. in Santa Maria).
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— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
