It took its time, but Modesto area finally gets first notable rain of autumn

A long-awaited storm got off to a late start in the Modesto area Wednesday, but the rain fell steadily by evening.

The Modesto Irrigation District recorded 0.35 inches at its downtown office as of 7 p.m. That brought the total to 0.42 inches for the weather year starting July 1. An average year has about 2 inches by this point.

The National Weather Service had forecast that the rain could start before dawn, but most of Thanksgiving eve was dry.

The storm also is bringing snow to middle and upper elevations of the Sierra Nevada. Spring and summer snowmelt is the main source of water for the San Joaquin Valley.

Light rain was one of the factors in a crash that knocked out power to about 250 customers near Doctors Medical Center at about 10:50 a.m. Wednesday, said Modesto police Lt. Robert Reyna.

A vehicle that was westbound on Granger Avenue approaching Florida Avenue attempted to pass the vehicle in front of it and the two collided, he said. One of the vehicles ended up crashing into a power pole at the corner.

The people involved had minor injuries, Reyna said. Power was out to about 250 customers for a little more than an hour before MID crews isolated the outage to 50 customers by around noon.

Those customers, which included medical officers and other businesses and residences between Granger and Briggsmore avenues and McHenry and Sherwood avenues, were expected to be without power until as late as midnight Thursday.

The Weather Service sees a 50 percent chance of Modesto showers Thanksgiving morning. The chances are 70 percent Thursday night, 90 percent Friday and 20 percent Saturday. The next chance of rain is Wednesday, Nov. 28.

Modesto Bee staff writer Erin Tracy contributed to this report.

This story was originally published November 21, 2018 at 7:22 PM.