Modesto area could get light rain after 10-day break. Here’s latest on snowpack, reservoirs

John Holland
·2 min read
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The Modesto area could get light rain Sunday and Monday, after 10 dry days that followed the winter deluges.

The National Weather Service forecasts up to 0.1 inches of rain and up to 4 inches of snow in the area’s Sierra Nevada watershed.

The outlook for Friday includes patchy fog until 8 a.m., with a low of 37 degrees and a high of 61. Saturday looks to be sunny, with temperatures between 38 and 56.

The Modesto Irrigation District has recorded 13.04 inches of rain at its downtown offices since the July 1 start of the water year. An average year brings 12.12 inches. The main part of the storm season still has about two months to go.

Modesto’s last rain was the 0.07 inches on Jan. 19, as the flood threats around California were starting to wane. Stanislaus County had just one evacuated area as of Thursday, along the San Joaquin River east of River Road between Crows Landing Road and Hills Ferry Road.

Large reservoirs in the Sierra Nevada foothills have prevented widespread flooding in the county. The operators hope to fill them after three years of drought but also have to leave enough room for snowmelt in spring.

Numbers of note as of Thursday from the California Department of Water Resources:

  • The snowpack in the central Sierra stands at 217% of average. It is the main source for MID and nearby farms and cities, and part of the supply for the Bay Area.

  • Don Pedro Reservoir on the Tuolumne River is at 75% of capacity. It is shared by MID and the Turlock Irrigation District.

  • New Melones Reservoir on the Stanislaus River is at 40% of average. It supplies the Oakdale and South San Joaquin irrigation districts and part of the federal Central Valley Project.

  • San Luis Reservoir near Los Banos is at 56% of capacity. It is a joint state and federal operation that stores water pumped from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta for use in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California.

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