Forecast for rain fizzled in Modesto area. Here’s how the storms still helped
Modesto got a mere 0.05 inches from rainstorms this week that had been forecast to dump as much as 2 inches.
But the storms did much better in the Tuolumne County watershed for the Modesto and Turlock irrigation districts.
Sunday was the wettest Sept. 18 ever in Sonora, at 0.65 inches, the Union Democrat newspaper reported. The city drains into creeks feeding Don Pedro Reservoir, owned by MID and TID.
Jamestown got 0.99 inches Sunday, and 1.3 inches fell on Mt. Elizabeth, near Twain Harte, the Union Democrat reported.
The storm series was erratic elsewhere in the state, bringing little moisture to some areas while helping to tamp down wildfires in others.
The 0.5 inch reading came from MID’s downtown rain gauge Sunday. It was the first recorded since the July 1 start of the rainfall year. Most storms tend to come from November through March, and they also drop the Sierra Nevada snow that is far more important to the water supply.
The California Department of Water Resources starts its water year Oct. 1. The one about to end will be the third straight year of drought.
The latest forecast from the National Weather Service shows conditions more typical of mid-September. Modesto can expect a high of 83 on Friday, 87 on Saturday, 89 both Sunday and Monday, and 88 on Tuesday. No rain is in sight.
Don Pedro was at 53% of its capacity as of Wednesday and 76% of its historical average for the date, DWR reported. Some drawdown is normal this deep into the irrigation season, but the lingering drought means even less water.
