Steady Rain Fails to Dampen Spirits on Land and Sea

A series of fast-paced storm fronts is expected to move through Ventura County this week, bringing scattered showers but mild temperatures to this rain-starved region.

The new weather system started early Sunday morning, providing a steady soaking that contributed to a handful of fender-benders but didn’t cause any of the major weather-related problems for which authorities had been bracing.

Forecasters said the precipitation should continue through this morning, tapering off just in time for another front to move in by early evening. Rain is expected to fall off and on through Thursday night.

“It’s just like in Seattle, where you get a little break, and then the rain starts up again,” said Gary Ryan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard. “Only it’s not as cold here.”

With the weather system originating over the eastern Pacific, temperatures will stay on the warm side, with overnight lows only dipping into the 50s. Snow is not expected to fall below 8,000 feet in Southern California mountains.

“This storm is not good for skiers,” Ryan said.

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Sunday’s storm dropped about half an inch of rain in Ventura and Moorpark, while gauges in Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks registered about one-third of an inch.

Although back-to-back storms over the weekend provided a much-needed boost in an unusually dry winter, rainfall totals are still far below normal for this time of year.

Ryan said this week’s weather systems are expected to drop up to 2 inches of rain.

“We are running about 45% of normal,” Ryan said. “We need some more rain to play catch-up, and we should make a good dent in the rainfall deficit over the next few days.”

That’s good news for Ventura-based lemon and avocado grower Carolyn Leavens, who spent Sunday morning watching from her kitchen window as her trees soaked up the rain.

“This is fabulous; it couldn’t be better,” she said, adding that her husband, Paul, had already noticed that the young lemons have increased in size since rainstorms last week.

“Everybody, especially people in the restaurant trade, needs big lemons, so they can get more slices from the fruit,” she said.

While strawberry growers were rejoicing last week over the early start to their harvest--due in part to sparse rainfall this winter--Oxnard grower George Yamamoto said he is confident that the new storms will not interfere with one of the season’s best starts in years.

“Oh, there may be a temporary slowdown, because the workers can’t get into the field to pick the berries,” said Yamamoto, who is also chairman of the California Strawberry Commission. “But there won’t be any appreciable slowdown in quantity or quality. The flavor this year is outstanding.”

The rainfall Sunday only improved conditions for a Valentine’s Day-themed surf contest at Surfers Point in Ventura.

The event, sponsored by the Santa Barbara Surf Club, featured teams of couples competing for a chance to surf at Hollister Ranch, just north of Santa Barbara, one of the most coveted spots in Southern California.

“It could have been windy, and that would have messed things up,” said Carpinteria resident Tom Trauntvein, who along with his wife of 19 years, Debbie, won the contest. “The rain helped the waves break nicely. It was a blessing.”

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Couples were judged on the length of their wave ride and on their ease of maneuverability. The mostly husband-and-wife teams earned extra points if they were able to hold hands or display some kind of affection for each other while surfing. “You need to have something for us old couples to do for Valentine’s,” Trauntvein said.

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County Rainfall

Here are rainfall figures from the Ventura County Flood Control Department for the 24-hour period ending at p.m. Sunday . Oct. 1 is the beginning of the official rain year.

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Rainfall Rainfall Normal rainfall Location last 24 hours since Oct. 1 to date Camarillo 0.39 3.51 8.35 Casitas Dam 0.75 6.07 14.62 Casitas Rec. Center 0.75 7.33 14.62 Fillmore 0.55 5.03 11.83 Matilija Dam 0.59 6.93 16.58 Moorpark 0.71 4.25 9.07 Ojai 0.35 4.86 13.13 Oxnard 0.47 3.11 9.00 Piru 0.12 2.48 10.60 Port Hueneme 0.63 4.57 08.84 Santa Paula 0.47 8.18 11.01 Simi Valley 0.43 3.00 8.74 Thousand Oaks 0.39 3.05 9.43 Ventura Govt. Center 0.67 4.68 9.95

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