More Rain Clouds Due on County’s Horizon

The showers that dumped up to 0.6 of an inch of rain on Orange County on Wednesday are expected to resume with greater force when a second storm moves in to the region tonight and a third storm drops even more rain Monday, meteorologists said.

Weather Central, which provides forecasts to The Times, reported uneven rainfall throughout the county Wednesday, ranging from 0.2 of an inch in Irvine to 0.6 in Orange by 4 p.m. Aliso Viejo received 0.16 of an inch, Laguna Beach saw 0.3 of an inch, and 0.48 of an inch dropped in Yorba Linda.

The rainfall caused the usual flurry of fender-benders, with no major injuries reported.

Despite the rain-slick pavement, the number of accidents reported was only slightly higher than normal, and not all accidents could be attributed to the wet weather, California Highway Patrol officials said.

The CHP reported 29 accidents between 6 and 10 a.m. when the rain was heaviest.

In one rain-related incident, carpool lanes on northbound Interstate 5 were blocked for about an hour at Lake Forest Drive after a black sport utility vehicle spun out, hit a guard rail and flipped over at 8:36 a.m. Only minor injuries were reported, CHP officials said.

In another incident, an Orange County Sheriff’s patrol car was involved in an accident with three other cars at 8:15 a.m. on the southbound Interstate 5 at Avenida Pico. No major injuries were reported in the accident, which blocked a few lanes of the freeway for about half an hour. It was unclear whether the accident was caused by rain, officials said.

The CHP also reported a blue sport utility vehicle that started hydroplaning and slid off the northbound Foothill Transportation Corridor at Santiago Canyon Road at about 8:47 a.m. One occupant had minor injuries.

Motorists may have as difficult a time commuting throughout the week and possibly Monday. More rain clouds should roll in later today, with showers developing into the night, said meteorologist Tom Carlson of Weather Central.

Rainfall is expected throughout the day Friday and into Saturday, dropping between a quarter to half an inch of rain in the coastal basin and up to an inch in the hills. The rain clouds will decrease by late Saturday, with dry weather expected for Sunday.

Winds picking up in the north Sunday evening will blow in another storm system, bringing with it a chance of rain for Monday, Carlson said.

Not counting Wednesday’s precipitation, the region remains about 2 inches short of its usual rainfall totals. As of Wednesday, Orange County received a total of 4.63 inches of rain since July 1, compared to the 6.3 norm for the period, according to Weather Central.

“But it does look like we’ll be making some of that up as we make our way through the next five days,” Carlson said.

Temperatures for the week will remain relatively stable, with coastal highs in the mid- to upper 50s and inland highs in the low to mid-60s.