More Showers Forecast for S.D. County; Rain in ‘Sheets’ Hits Campo

Sudden afternoon and evening thundershowers are predicted for today and Thursday in the mountains and deserts of San Diego County as unstable, moist tropical air continues to stream northward from Mexico, the National Weather Service said.

The tropical airstream caused a rash of showers in the mountains and deserts Tuesday, prompting flash-flood warnings for the afternoon and evening, said forecaster Harvey Hastrup.

Hardest hit was Campo, about 60 miles east of San Diego, where two telephone poles and part of a barn were damaged by a thunderstorm, said Hastrup.

One Campo home had to be evacuated after it was hit by a flash flood, said Bill Tait, who operates the ambulance for the Campo Volunteer Fire Department.

“It rained really hard here,” said Tait. “It came down in sheets.”

By Tuesday evening, however, the rains had subsided and the National Weather Service reported only 0.12 of an inch of precipitation. Trace amounts of rainfall were also reported in Escondido, Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, Lemon Grove, Miramar Naval Air Station, Spring Valley and Lindbergh Field in downtown San Diego, Hastrup said.

Hastrup said the forecast for today and Thursday calls for more thunderstorms in the mountains and deserts, with a chance that rain will also fall on the western foothills. Motorists traveling over the mountains should brace for diminished visibility and jolting winds, he said.

“People should keep in mind that these thundershowers have the potential of bringing strong gusty winds to the area,” he said.

Hastrup explained that the moist tropical air is being drawn into the San Diego area by a high pressure system hovering about 18,000 feet over the Four Corners area of the Southwest. Clockwise winds swirling under the high pressure cap is the force drawing the moist tropical air over San Diego, he said.

Besides the thunderstorms, Hastrup said, the San Diego area should expect variable cloudiness, with temperatures a little warmer than they have been the early part of the week.

For Wednesday, beach areas will see highs of 70 to 75, he said. The coastal strip will have highs of 74 to 79, with lows ranging from 63 to 68.

The inland valleys will have highs of 80 to 88 and lows of 56 to 64; the mountains, highs of 78 to 86 and lows of 64 to 62; and the deserts, highs of 98 to 106 and lows of 74 to 82.