Rain drenched Southern California on Friday as residents in San Bernardino mountain communities battered by the recent storms braced for the possibility of flooding or roofs collapsing.
As of mid-morning, there were no reports of new damage and no calls for service or emergencies, said Eric Sherwin, a spokesman for the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District.
Communities in the San Bernardino Mountains continue to dig out from record-breaking snow that dropped on the region in recent weeks, leaving residents stranded and without food or basic necessities. The conditions there led President Biden to declare an emergency for San Bernardino County as well as dozens of others in California, after a late Thursday night request from Gov. Gavin Newsom, as another wet storm pummels parts of the state.
But the current storm, so far, has been mild.
“It’s been pretty light rain so far,” said Samantha Connolly, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Diego, which covers Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. She’s expecting steady, moderate rain Friday afternoon and night.
There also will be spotty showers on Saturday, Connolly said.
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The San Bernardino mountain areas will be looking at one to two inches of rain Friday and Saturday, she said. For much of Orange County, rainfall could be half an inch to an inch during the same time period but the Santa Ana mountains will get up to two inches, Connolly said. The Inland Empire will also see half an inch to an inch of rain.
The mountain areas will get the brunt of the rain, according to Connolly.
“Due to the high snow levels, most of the existing snowpack will be affected by the rainfall and the combination of rain and snowmelt could produce flooding impacts in the San Bernardino and Riverside County mountains,” forecasters said.
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