April Showers Sprinkle Valley

Ah, the fickle Southern California spring. The day after San Fernando Valley dwellers donned shorts and sandals to enjoy a brilliantly sunny, mid-80s day, the skies darkened, temperatures dropped and a nagging, traffic-snarling drizzle fell.

By sundown, about 0.2 of an inch of rain had drifted from the skies onto downtown Los Angeles.

As of 7 p.m. Tuesday, Northridge had gotten 0.3 of an inch and Woodland Hills just 0.06, the National Weather Service reported.

The rain helped crowd streets and highways with crunched fenders and dozens of injuries throughout the afternoon, with 120 accidents reported in Los Angeles County in just one hour--between 1:30 and 2:30 p.m.--according to California Highway Patrol Officer Bruce Ferrier.

In the Valley, between 1 and 6 p.m. there were 25 accidents--about double the normal number--Ferrier said. None caused serious injuries.

“It was just kind of a mess out there,” he said.

Thick, low clouds huddled around the Angeles National Forest as the afternoon wore on, chasing the light from the skies earlier than normal and--even as the rain stopped--making the air heavy with humidity. But the foul weather spared a few spots.

Even as Valley high schools canceled athletic games and practices, Lancaster’s minor league baseball team, the JetHawks, preparing to play their first-ever home game, enjoyed flawless skies, not a speck of rain in sight.

“It’s sunny and the wind is blowing,” said receptionist Belinda Thornhill, amid bustling excitement in the clubhouse.

“We got lucky.”

Some who weren’t so fortunate moaned that the spotty rain re-grimed their freshly washed cars.

“My Corvette just doesn’t run as well in this weather,” said Los Angeles Police Sgt. Dan Mastro, chuckling. “It just doesn’t like the rain.”

But carwashes shouldn’t expect a rush of customers for a few more days, because a slight chance of rain will linger on for the remainder of the week. Clouds are expected to breeze in and out, and there will be a 20% chance of rainfall off and on until the weekend, said Michael Most of the National Weather Service.

But despite Tuesday’s drizzle, we’ve still had a drier winter than usual.

Total rainfall for the Los Angeles area is now about 85% of normal for this time of year, Most said.