Rain and wind expected to linger in Modesto area

The third storm in a week moved into the Northern San Joaquin Valley on Saturday evening as expected, but there were no reports of serious flooding as officials continued to monitor local rivers and creeks.

Nevertheless, National Weather Service forecasters said a flood watch remained in effect until this afternoon, when this latest storm is expected to move out of the region.

Forecasters predicted the storm would dump 1 to 3 inches of rain on the valley. This additional rainfall, on top of already saturated soil, increased the potential for flooding. About half an inch of rain was expected to fall in Modesto overnight.

Modesto stayed mostly dry throughout Saturday with only 0.03 of an inch of rain falling as of 8 p.m., according to the Modesto Irrigation District.

The potential for bad weather postponed Saturday night's Celebration of Lights Parade in downtown Modesto, but there were plenty of attendees at the Dickens Faire earlier in the day. A new date for the parade has not been set.

Small streams in the region were expected to overflow, but there were no reports Saturday of flooding along Dry Creek or Orestimba Creek in Stanislaus County, according to Brian England, a supervisor with the county's public works department.

Large rivers in the region also were expected to rise, but the Tuolumne and San Joaquin rivers were nowhere near the flood stage Saturday evening.

The weather service predicted showers for the Modesto area mostly before 4 p.m. today, dropping possibly more than half an inch of rain. Today's forecast included 16- to 18-mph winds with gusts as high as 25 mph.

A 40 percent chance of showers will linger until about 10 tonight, with mostly cloudy conditions and a low of about 46 degrees. Wind gusts could reach 18 mph overnight.

A mostly sunny sky was expected Monday with light wind, before rainy weather returns to the valley Monday night through Wednesday night.

Whom to call in Modesto

• To report city tree emergencies, call (209) 342-2249.

• To report street flooding, call (209) 577-6200.

• To report traffic signal and-or streetlight outages, call (209) 342-2297 from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; call (209) 575-5245 from 3:30 p.m. to 7 a.m.

• Sandbags are available free to the public at the city of Modesto corporation yard, 501 N. Jefferson St., until 6 p.m. For sandbag-related questions, call (209) 342-2246.