Good morning, Central Coast!
This morning is starting off with a mix of freezing or near-freezing temperatures in sheltered valleys. Thanks to those chilly conditions there is a Freeze Warning in place for western Santa Barbara County through 9 a.m.
There is also a high surf advisory for the west-facing beaches into this morning for 7-11ft. breakers with rip. Even though the alert is expected to expire by 9 a.m. tricky conditions will remain through the day. Plus even more high surf is expected through the weekend.
Temps today will be a touch warmer than yesterday. Not a huge change, 60s for most communities with some 50s by the beach.
Outside of that, much of this week locally will be quiet but the larger story is how the weather will get unsettled for the weekend and beyond. In northern California an atmospheric river looks to develop for more serious rainfall, it doesn’t appear at this time that the Central Coast will get a direct hit from that but we will still see some impacts.
Rain chances will begin in northern San Luis Obispo County as early as Friday and spread southeastward through the weekend. While it’s nearly certain the region will see rain at some point over the three-day period, any given 12-hour window has a 30-40% chance of rain.
Current forecasts suggest totals of 0.75 to 1 inch north of Point Conception, with locally higher amounts (up to 2 inches) possible in northwest San Luis Obispo County. South of Point Conception, totals are expected to range from 0.25 to 0.5 inches.
This will be a warm system, so snow is not expected in the local mountains.
The system’s exact track and intensity are still uncertain, so rain amounts could change as the forecast evolves.
Rain chances may linger into Monday as the system slowly exits the region. Cooler temperatures and unsettled weather could persist early in the week before conditions stabilize midweek.
Here is what that looks like on the 7 day forecast.
Stay tuned for updates as the weekend rain event approaches! Have a great day Central Coast!
