Storm Update

Storm expected to arrive Friday night--finally

11:38 AM PDT on Friday, September 21, 2007

By JOHN ASBURY
The Press-Enterprise

The storm that forecasters have been promising all week may finally arrive tonight, bringing an unexpected September thunderstorm and snow to some mountain communities.

Though it's hard to tell from the mild weather and blue skies over most of Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the Canadian cold front is drifting off the San Clemente Islands and is beginning to move into Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.

Chilly temperatures and rain are expected to move in the area tonight and last through Saturday evening. Meteorologists have said it will likely be the worst storm to hit Southern California in September in 20 years, drenching the region accustom to hot temperatures and Santa Ana winds.

"As storms go this is fairly ordinary, but for September this is remarkable," said Philip Gonsalves, a forecaster with the National Weather Service.

The unusual cold front was pulled down through Southern California by a low pressure system and cool temperatures through polar winds, Gonsalves said.

The storm will cover most of Riverside and San Bernardino counties, but rain totals will vary from a half-inch in the deserts to 3 inches in the mountains.

Next week should provide a slight warm-up, but it may be short-lived, Gonsalves said. A cooling trend should be expected for the next several months.