Storm Could Drop Up to 1 1/2 Inches by Tuesday Night

Don’t stash those umbrellas away yet. More rain is expected by nightfall today.

It won’t be much--anywhere from a quarter-inch to 1 1/2 inches along the west-facing canyon areas--but it will hang around most of Tuesday before moving on that night, according to forecasters.

Today is expected to start with cloudy skies that will start dropping rain later in the day, said Wes Etheredge, a meteorologist with WeatherData of Wichita, Kan., which provides forecasts for The Times.

The wet weather is the result of a low-pressure front that was off the coast of San Francisco on Sunday night and was expected to move southeast through the Southland, Etheredge said.

This has nothing to do with El Nino, he said, adding that it is a common winter weather system for Southern California.

Today’s temperatures are expected to reach the low to mid-60s after overnight lows dipping to the upper 40s to low 50s.

Tuesday’s temperatures are expected to be about the same, Etheredge said.

High and low temperatures Sunday: Anaheim, 67 and 51; Santa Ana, 66 and 53; El Toro, 64 and 52; Newport Beach, 63 and 54; San Juan Capistrano, 66 and 50; and Dana Point, 60 and 54.

The wet weather should bring snow to local mountains above 6,800 feet, Etheredge said.