First day of spring brings hail, lightning and thunderstorms to Sacramento region

Wednesday is the first day of spring, but you couldn’t tell by the weather.

Four National Weather Service alerts issued at about 2 p.m. Wednesday warned of strong thunderstorms near Rancho Murieta, Carmichael, Stockton and Beale Air Force Base.

Much of the Sacramento area could be hit by the afternoon rains. The storm could impact the central Sacramento area and could reach as far north as Wheatland, and as far south as Stockton.

These thunderstorms could include pea-sized hail, the NWS alerts said. They also said the thunderstorms include “torrential rain” that could cause localized flooding.

Frequent cloud to ground lightning is occurring with this storm, the NWS said, and can strike up to 10 miles away from a thunderstorm. The NWS recommended that people seek a safe shelter, inside a building or vehicle, during the storm.

The Sacramento Office of Emergency Services tweeted that they received reports of nickel-size hail falling and encouraged drivers to watch road conditions and pull over if conditions become dangerous.