A cloudy & cool Tuesday morning before more active weather arrives tonight
Some dense fog developed late last night due to cool and moist conditions. Expect visibility concerns for the first part of the morning and then lower clouds will clear but middle to upper clouds remain. It will be a cloudy day, with slightly cooler temperatures as a cold front approaches. Highs will climb into the 60s for the day, perfect day for a run! Get outside while you can because our next round of rain arrives tonight. This cold front will produce less precipitation than the last few storms but soil is so saturated, the ground will not be able to hold additional moisture. This storm system looks to have more energy associated with it as well, meaning we could see very strong winds and heavier rain at times causing the potential for more flash flooding concerns and even a possible waterspout or small tornado spin up. Its likely the region will only gather another half of an inch or even less of rain, but we cant rule out a powerful storm or two, quickly adding to impressive rainfall rates. As of early this morning, 4-day rainfall totals have climbed to 3.86 inches here in Santa Barbara and Ventura following close behind right at 3.70 inches. With more rain tonight, multiple flood watches, warnings and advisories have been updated. A Coastal Flood Advisory and High Surf Advisory remain in effect for most of the viewing area until 9am. A Flood Watch, Flash Flood Watch and Flood Advisory will remain until Wednesday morning. The cold front brings more rain and and very unstable conditions tonight, there is a lot of rotation associated with this system so there is the possibility for a weak waterspout or tornado to form. Keep an eye on watches, warnings and advisories.
Wednesday is calm, cool and cloudy. More fog will likely impact your visibility and morning commute, but will clear rather quickly. Temperatures for the day will climb into the middle 60s and it will be a good day to workout outside! Winds will be calm and skies may open up to a little more sunshine, but it is possible showers will linger into the morning. Its still a good idea to avoid coastal areas as marine conditions will still be dangerous with strong winds and high surf.
Thursday and Friday are calm and drying out. Clouds will decrease each evening and give way to more sunshine. A slight warming trend will be observed over these days as well but highs will still struggle to make it into the upper 60s. The focus will be on the storm arriving this weekend. Timing and amounts are uncertain, but as of now it appears weaker than the most recent storm. Although, less rain is anticipated now, this forecast could change over the next few days and it is imperative to stay up to date. If this next storm develops into something larger, very dangerous and widespread impacts will be felt. The ground is so saturated from the last few storms which could add to mudslides, uprooted trees and flooding. This will be closely monitored over the next few days.
