Wind-Whipped Storm Brings Rain, 1st Snow

A blustery storm whipped by chilly winds swept across Ventura County on Sunday, blanketing the mountains with a few inches of snow and spattering rain from Ventura to Thousand Oaks.

The wintry weather, which began Saturday afternoon, is expected to last through Tuesday or Wednesday before giving way to sunshine and warmer temperatures.

“It looks pretty cool and cloudy for the next couple of days,” said Steve Burback, meteorologist for WeatherData Inc. “It is a real slow-moving system.”

The cold front sent temperatures downward and caused snow to fall at elevations of about 5,000 feet, including the mountaintops north of Ojai in much of the Los Padres National Forest.

Some motorists on California 33, about 25 minutes north of Wheeler Hot Springs, pulled off the side of the road to brave icy winds and play in the first snow of the season, several inches deep.

“It started snowing Saturday night and it hasn’t stopped,” Sheriff’s Deputy Dave Kenney said Sunday morning from his station in Lockwood Valley. “It’s great for December. It gets you in the holiday mood.”

Meanwhile, between 0.07 and 0.50 of an inch of rain fell at lower elevations, said Terry Schaeffer, an agricultural meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Santa Paula.

“The rain was welcome,” Schaeffer said. “It helps the plants. But it wasn’t enough to do anything for the water supply” depleted by five years of drought.

At least 10 minor traffic accidents were reported from Saturday night to Sunday morning on freeways and highways because of slick pavement, said Roger Craven, a dispatcher for the California Highway Patrol.

And while much of the rain had stopped by Sunday afternoon, winds gusted up to 40 m.p.h. in some areas of the county.

In Santa Paula, a gust of wind toppled a tree, which downed cable lines and crashed onto the bed of a pickup truck. The tree narrowly missed the truck’s cab. The driver and his passenger escaped with minor injuries.

Weekend temperatures ranged from the upper 50s to mid-60s during the day and low 40s and upper 30s at night--about 10 degrees below normal for this time of year.

Forecasters predicted that it would be slightly warmer today. However, more rain could be coming later this week.

The National Guard Armory in Oxnard opened its doors to the homeless on Saturday and Sunday nights as the temperatures dipped. Workers at Zoe Christian Center, a homeless shelter in Oxnard, said the storm stretched to capacity the shelter they can offer 150 homeless people at the deteriorating facility.

“The roof is leaking and the heaters don’t work,” office manager Donnice Cohen said. “It’s cold and wet. It’s not the ideal situation.”

Burback said the cold front “might just be the taste of things to come.”

With the onset of El Nino, he said, forecasters are anticipating that the winter in Southern California will be cold and wet.

El Nino is a warm Pacific Ocean current that disrupts tropical heating patterns and, consequently, affects the jet stream that moves weather patterns toward the West Coast--allowing for more snow and rain.

“It’s been so dry,” Burback said. “It’s about time for it.”