County Gets a Drenching From Surprise Storm

A sneaky storm that originated off the coast of Santa Barbara dumped more than one inch of rain on parts of San Diego County on Saturday and up to eight inches of snow in area mountains.

The stubborn low-pressure system created by gushes of cold arctic air was expected to bypass San Diego but instead gave the area its heaviest rains in three months, said Wilbur Shigehara, a National Weather Service forecaster.

The rain is predicted to move east this morning, leaving partly cloudy skies and cool temperatures for most of today and Monday, Shigehara said.

Saturday’s downpour forced the cancellation of the Shearson Lehman Brothers Andy Williams Open at Torrey Pines golf course Saturday, while snowfall caused the California Highway Patrol to require chains for travel in area mountains.

The storm not only created rain but caused temperatures and the snow level to drop considerably. Saturday’s high temperature of 56 degrees at Lindbergh Field was the third coldest Feb. 8 on record.

Del Mar was the wettest part of the county with 1.50 inches of rain. Lindbergh Field received 0.88; Vista, 1.25; Lemon Grove, 0.77, and Chula Visa, 0.54.

Snow fell on most of the county’s mountains 3,000 feet or higher, Shigehara said. About 8 inches of snow fell in the Cuyamaca mountains, 7 inches at Mt. Laguna and 5 inches in Julian.

Temperatures in all areas today will be about 63 degrees, with only slightly warmer temperatures expected for Monday. Nighttime temperatures at the coastal areas will be about 47 tonight, while inland nights could dip below freezing.

Frost is expected tonight in the inland valleys.

Mountain temperatures will remain near freezing in the daytime, dropping to the teens at night, he said.