California just endured one of the driest Januaries on record, compounding drought problems and offsetting earlier winter rains. However the latest climate models offer hopes of average to slightly above average rains over the next 3 months, according to report on the Los Angeles Times. Chances for above average rainfall are higher for the Southern portion of the state.
While long range forecasts are difficult to predict, normal rainfall would be a welcome boon to the state, though a full recovery from multiple years of drought would require a deal more water. “When California’s drought does finally end, it could happen with a torrent of winter storms that stream across the Pacific, dumping much of the year’s rain in potentially catastrophic downpours.”
Such storms have been responsible for breaking 40% of California’s droughts since the 1950s but were blocked by high pressure ridges the last 2 winters.
The full LA Times story can be found here.
