Dry stretch doesn’t mean rain is finished in Sacramento, weather forecaster says

The first week of the year will be warm and dry, but that doesn’t mean 2015 will stay that way, weather experts said Sunday.

After back-to-back storms drenched the state through much of December, a little dry weather is hardly something to worry about, according to the National Weather Service.

The water comes in waves.

“It’s actually pretty normal to see a lot of storms and then go dry for a while,” meteorologist Robert Baruffaldi said Sunday. “Hopefully the pattern will shift back and allow for more storms to come to California, but it’s not unexpected to hit a dry run for several weeks after a nice wet streak.”

In the past three months, Sacramento has seen more than 150 percent of its average precipitation thanks to heavy December storms that caused power outages, mudslides, downed trees and flooded waterways, data from the California Department of Water Resources shows.

But experts have said it may take five or six more intense, cold storms to remedy California’s historic drought and ensure that the snow pack is sufficient to meet water demand next summer.

That’s not going to happen this week.

High temperatures running nearly 10 degrees above average were expected to run as high as the mid-60s in the foothills. Foggy conditions expected to cloak the region will keep temperatures slightly cooler in Sacramento, with highs expected in the high 50s to low 60s, the Weather Service says. No rain is expected this week.

This story was originally published January 4, 2015 at 10:51 AM with the headline "Dry stretch doesn’t mean rain is finished in Sacramento, weather forecaster says."