Rain and some big waves are expected to result from a cold front moving through Santa Barbara County this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
The fast-moving front is expected to sweep through Santa Barbara County on Sunday, and could bring anywhere from a half-inch to 1.5 inches of rain in its wake.
Rain will likely move through Saturday night and into Sunday, said Mike Wofford, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Los Angeles/Oxnard.
The models for the amount of rainfall are still fluctuating, but “there’s the potential for some heavier numbers,” he said.
“We might get some brief heavy rain early Sunday morning.”
The rain that could come through is significantly less than the showers seen earlier in January, and Wofford said he expects the rain will have cleared out by noon on Sunday.
High surf is expected through the weekend as well. Waves are expected to increase to 20 feet on Friday on the Central Coast, and another even larger swell could affect coastal areas Sunday evening into Monday.
Some coastal flooding is possible for low-lying areas and parking lots Friday and once again Sunday into Monday morning, the NWS said. Recent burn areas may also see some flooding.
Cooler temperatures are expected with the cold front and will likely be in the upper 50s and lower 60s for most of the coastal areas, and will become even cooler in interior areas.
Santa Barbara County residents may also notice some strong winds throughout the weekend, with gusts between 30 and 50 miles per hour, Wofford said.
Though elevations higher than 6,000 feet may experience some snow during the weekend’s cold front, Wofford said mountaintops in Santa Barbara County will likely not see much.
— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at lcooper@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
