Storms headed to Sacramento with cooler temperatures? Don’t be fooled, says weather service
The Sacramento area was seeing a smorgasbord of weather phenomenon this weekend, ranging from record-high heat to rain and thunderstorms.
Sacramento residents opening up their windows Sunday morning for a bit of fresh air would be met with a rude awakening, as temperatures cooled off little overnight. By 9 a.m., it had already reached 90 degrees, a portentous sign of the day’s heat.
The last few days already saw record heat twice in a row. On Friday, Sacramento Executive Airport hit 106 degrees, matching the 1967 record, and surpassing the average temperature by 15 degrees. Downtown Sacramento, meanwhile, was just a degree below a 1920 record at 106 degrees.
On Saturday, a 100-year-old record was shattered. Downtown Sacramento was 111 degrees, outpacing the old record of 108 degrees. The Executive Airport was 109 degrees, breaking last year’s record of 105 degrees.
For many Californians, the oppressive heat brought rolling blackouts, ordered by the state’s largest electrical grid operator and executed by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and other large utilities. Amid the heat wave, power was cut to thousands, many in El Dorado County, in a series of rolling blackouts. Saturday’s round of blackouts, the second day in a row where Californians lost power, lasted about 20 minutes. PG&E said 220,000 customers were temporarily without power, including 65,000 in the Stockton area.
But Sunday morning was shaping up to be somewhat different. Storms rolling in from the Bay Area brought cloud cover, winds and even a bit of rain to Sacramento.
The National Weather Service was cautiously optimistic on social media: “The cloud cover will likely keep temperatures cooler than yesterday, but don’t be deceived! It will still be very hot!”
Forecasters said wind gusts were recorded at 35 miles per hour in Sacramento, while in Cordelia, much closer to the bay, winds hit 51 miles per hour, but warned that winds caused by the storm could be as high as 55 miles per hour. Lightning was seen throughout the Bay Area and the weather service warned of severe dangers, including the possibility of wildfires.
The Sacramento office of the National Weather Service predicted temperatures for Sunday reaching anywhere from 100 to 108 degrees in the Valley, while those in the foothills could expect it to be a little cooler, ranging from 95 to 103 degrees. Communities in the Sierra Nevada can expect temperatures from 75 to 95 degrees.
The weather service has also established an excessive heat warning to last through Wednesday, citing temperatures as high as 112 degrees throughout the Sacramento Valley and including parts of the Bay Area and the San Joaquin Valley. Overnight lows won’t bring much relief, dropping down into the 70s to low 80s for the next few days. A red flag warning, indicating an increased risk of wildfires, was also issued in parts of the mountainous north state to last through Monday morning.
This story was originally published August 16, 2020 at 10:24 AM.
