Half an Inch of Rain Falls; More on Way

Scattered showers Wednesday dropped about half an inch of rain on parts of Ventura County, part of a front moving in advance of a larger storm system expected to hit the region late tonight.

Bruce Rockwell of the National Weather Service in Oxnard said most areas received between one-quarter to one-half an inch of rain. Snow levels dropped to 4,000 feet by Wednesday afternoon and will stay there as the next storm brings more cold air.

Highs today should top out at 60 degrees, with lows in the mid-40s.

The bulk of the rain from the coming storm will fall Friday, Rockwell said, and temperatures will only reach the mid-50s. Showers should continue through Saturday morning before the storm clears out. The approaching system could bring as much as 1 1/2 inches of rain to some inland areas of the county.

Wednesday’s rain, although relatively light and in competition with puffy clouds and bursts of sunshine most of the day, brought the usual slew of accidents to Ventura County roadways, said Officer Dave Webb of the California Highway Patrol’s Ventura office.

More than a dozen accidents were reported, the worst being a head-on collision on a slick section of Santa Rosa Road about 7 a.m., Webb said. The crash sent a 23-year-old Oxnard woman and 46-year-old Sun Valley man to separate hospitals, where both were listed in stable condition Wednesday afternoon, he said.

Adelaida Diaz, who is 24 weeks pregnant, was traveling east when she tried to pass another car and moved into oncoming traffic on a two-lane section of road near Santa Rosa Elementary School, Webb said. Her car slammed head-on into a car driven by Francisco Salinas, Webb said.

Diaz suffered a broken leg; an ultrasound revealed that the unborn child was unhurt, he added. Salinas broke both ankles and his left arm, Webb said.

Webb said small mudslides were reported on California 150 near Ojai but did not obstruct traffic, although CHP officers are preparing for more this weekend.

“It was off and on all day. You get the wet roads and people not slowing down,” he said.

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County Rainfall

Here are rainfall figures from the Ventura County Flood Control Division for the 24-hour period ending at 3 p.m. WednesdayOct. 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 0.42 4.65 6.63 Casitas Dam 0.65 10.58 11.26 Casitas Rec. Center 0.75 11.43 11.21 Fillmore 0.52 8.42 9.22 Matilija Dam 0.89 11.83 12.49 Moorpark 0.31 5.43 7.11 Ojai 0.69 9.17 10.00 Upper Ojai 0.70 11.45 10.69 Oxnard 0.36 5.65 6.90 Piru 0.38 4.59 8.22 Port Hueneme 0.24 4.54 6.81 Santa Paula 0.58 7.87 8.46 Simi Valley 0.29 5.52 6.79 Thousand Oaks 0.27 4.52 7.30 Ventura Govt. Center 0.54 6.97 7.64

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