Countywide : Winter Storm Could Bring Inch of Rain

Forecasters are predicting up to an inch of rain in Ventura County’s coastal areas by Friday from the first winter-like storm to strike the area in nearly a month.

The cold front, expected to arrive by this morning, will probably be followed by a weaker disturbance Sunday before spring-like weather returns, said Dean Jones, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which forecasts for The Times.

“This time of year is a transition period, with the weather pattern continually changing in March and April,” Jones said. “By the middle of next week, the pattern will probably change again, with another high-pressure ridge developing over the western states bringing fair weather.”

Jones said today’s storm should drop between a half-inch and an inch of rain in coastal areas, with the heaviest amounts coming in scattered thunderstorms this afternoon.

Rainfall in the mountains and foothills is expected to range between an inch and 1 1/2 inches, he said.

Temperatures are expected to remain cool through Friday, with highs ranging from the high 50s along the coast to the low and mid-60s inland. Overnight lows are expected to dip into the high 30s in protected inland pockets Friday morning, and in the 40s and lower 50s elsewhere.