Moderate to heavy rain fell across Santa Barbara County on Sunday and overnight, and there’s another chance of showers in the middle of this week, according to the National Weather Service.
Rainfall totals in most areas ranged from about a quarter of an inch to more than an inch, according to the county Flood Control District.
The latest storm pushed the countywide “normal to date” rainfall to 83% for the rain year that began Sept. 1.
As of Monday morning, 24-hour totals included 0.95 inches in Santa Barbara, 0.97 inches at the Goleta Water District, 0.09 inches in Carpinteria, 0.48 inches in Montecito, 0.90 inches in Santa Maria, 0.80 inches in Lompoc, and 0.58 inches of rain in Solvang.
A gauge at the top of Tecolote Canyon, in the Santa Ynez Mountains just west of Goleta, recorded the highest one-day rainfall total from the storm — 2.93 inches.
Other precipitation totals in the county showed San Marcos Pass above Santa Barbara received 2.22 inches, followed by 1.97 inches at El Deseo on the ridge of the Santa Ynez Mountains above Santa Barbara.
Those figures are for the 24 hours ending around 9:30 a.m. Monday.
Lake Cachuma, one of the county’s major water sources, has risen about a foot in the last two days, and stood at 73% of capacity on Monday.
Upstream on the Santa Ynez River, Gibraltar Reservoir is spilling.
Expect mostly sunny skies on Monday and Tuesday, with high temperatures in the low-60s and breezy conditions. Overnight lows should be in the mid- to upper-40s.
This week’s storm is expected to drop rainfall Wednesday and Thursday, according to forecasters.
There’s a 20-percent chance of showers Wednesday, increasing to 30-percent on Wednesday night and Thursday.
Sunny and mostly sunny skies are expected Friday through Sunday.
Daytime highs should be in the lower to mid-60s, with overnight lows in the mid- to upper-40s.
“Below normal temperatures will persist through the week, and will finally warm to near normal by Sunday,” the NWS said in its forecast discussion Monday morning.
Statistically, March is the area’s third wettest month of the year.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center says there’s a 50-40 percent chance of below-normal rainfall for Santa Barbara County and the Central Coast region between this weekend through April 1.
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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.