Update: Flooding reported throughout Stanislaus County as 2 inches of rain fall overnight
Update, 8:15 a.m.
Rain continued to fall Monday morning following a wet Sunday night.
According to the Modesto Irrigation District, the downtown area has received 1.08 inches of rain today through 8 a.m. On Sunday, the MID reported 1.61 inches in Modesto, with the majority of it falling between the hours of 9 p.m. and midnight.
According to the California Highway Patrol, there is road flooding being reported in the following areas:
- Southbound Highway 99 in Modesto near the Hatch Road off-ramp.
- Two places along Claribel Road south and southeast of Riverbank: at Alberts Road and Eleanor Avenue
- South of Waterford at Montpellier Road and Whitmore Road, where there is a report of a Nissan stuck in water.
- West of Modesto at Shiloh and West Grayson Roads, where a vehicle is stalled in water.
There also have been some minor traffic accidents reported in Stanislaus County, and one fatality in Merced County, the CHP reported.
The Modesto Police Department reminded drivers this morning to:
1. Use headlights when driving in the rain.
2. Slow down.
3. Replace old wiper blades.
4. Don’t drive on bald tires.
5. Keep a safe distance between you and the vehicle in front of you.
6. Never driving through standing water.
We will have more on the weather later this morning.
For those wondering, the 1.61 inches that fell Sunday does not come close to Modesto’s single-day record. That mark was set on Dec. 11, 1906, when the MID recorded 3.41 inches.
It was, however, the wettest Oct. 24 on record. The prior mark of 0.58 inches was recorded on that date in 1986.
Update, 5:30 a.m.
Downtown Modesto has received more than 2 inches of rain since 10 p.m. Sunday night, according to the Modesto Irrigation District.
After residents withstood largely high winds and very little rain for most of Sunday, that changed by 10 p.m.
According to MID, 1.34 inches fell in downtown from 9 p.m. to midnight.
Through 5 a.m. this morning, another 0.94 inches of rain has fallen. Overall on Sunday, Modesto received 1.61 inches.
According to the California Highway Patrol, there have been some minor accidents in the early morning hours in and around Stanislaus County.
At 3:41 a.m., there was a spinout in the southbound lanes of Highway 99. The wreck was listed as non-injury.
In west Modesto, there was a non-injury wreck near Paradise and Stone roads that knocked down a PG&E pole.
At 4:55 a.m., there was a report of a vehicle down an embankment on northbound Highway 99 south of Turlock in which one occupant received minor injuries.
According to the National Weather Service, rain is expected to subside by 11 a.m. in the Modesto area.
We’ll have more on this story as information becomes available.
Original story
A National Weather Service flood watch and wind advisory both were in effect for the Modesto area Sunday, but during the daylight hours at least, the precipitation barely materialized.
By 5 a.m. Sunday, the Modesto Irrigation District had recorded 0.12 inches of rain. A smattering then fell for a few minutes in the 2 p.m. hour, but it wasn’t enough to measure.
Wind, on the other hand, brought down at least a couple of traffic-blocking tree limbs and may have been responsible for scattered power failures.
The outages page of the Turlock Irrigation District website listed two areas of Hilmar, in Merced County, where a combined 632 customers were without power Sunday afternoon. TID listed no problems in Stanislaus County.
On Facebook, a few Modesto Irrigation District customers along Morris Avenue near McHenry Avenue and Bodem Street reported a power failure Sunday morning. MID spokeswoman Melissa Williams confirmed Sunday afternoon that there had been a few small, scattered, weather-related power interruptions in the morning.
“As always, our crews stand ready to respond to any issues,” she said by text message.
On its Facebook page, MID says outages should be reported anytime day or night by calling 209-526-8222.
Heavier rain — between 1 and 2 inches — was forecast for overnight Sunday into Monday. Wind was expected to continue, at 15 to 22 mph, with gusts as high as 34 mph.
The forecast for Monday is a 90% chance of rain, with thunderstorms also possible after 11 a.m. Rainfall of between a tenth and a quarter inch is possible — more if there’s a thunderstorm.
The flood watch warns that the levels of small creeks and streams may rise in heavy rain, and there could be local ponding on roads.
Wind Monday is expected to be 9 to 16 mph, with gusts up to 24 mph. The high temperature is expected to be near 62 degrees.
By Monday night, the chance of rain drops to 30%, and less than a tenth of an inch is expected. Wind also should be much more calm, just 3 to 7 mph.
The sunny sky should be back Tuesday, when the high is expected to be near 63 and the wind will be light and variable, 5 to 7 mph.
Sunny days are forecast to continue the rest of the week, with daily highs near 67 Wednesday, 69 Thursday, 70 Friday and 67 Saturday.
This story was originally published October 24, 2021 at 4:01 PM.
