More wet weather expected this weekend

SAN DIEGO (CNS) – A temperate winter storm brought widespread rainfall
to the San Diego area Friday, ushering in a spate of cloudy skies and wet
conditions expected to last through the weekend.

The low-pressure system out of the eastern Pacific pulled moist
subtropical air into Southern California, resulting in showers that began late
Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.

Up to an inch of precipitation likely will fall throughout the county
through tonight ahead of cooler temperatures and more scattered cloudbursts
continuing into early Monday, meteorologists predicted.

By late this morning, most areas had gotten anywhere from a few tenths
of an inch of moisture to nearly a half-inch. The highest amount was recorded
on Otay Mountain, where 0.61 of an inch accumulated over a 12-hour period
ending about 11:30 a.m., the weather service reported.

The downpours, meanwhile, led to some typical rainy-day problems on the
region's wet roadways. Between midnight and 10 a.m., the California Highway
Patrol logged 119 crashes. By comparison, the CHP generally responds to 50-75
accidents on local freeways and rural roads over an entire day of fair weather.

The unsettled atmospheric system also could let loose with up to several
inches of snow above the 4,500-foot level Sunday and early Monday, NWS
forecaster Mike Watkins said.