Chances of wet winter look good for central state - The Salinas Californian
There's a strong chance that beginning in the fall, a strong El Nino system will be an engine for storms that could make this a very wet winter along the West Coast, according to the National Weather Service. NWS officials stop short at predicting heavy rains because there are too many variables that could affect where the storms come ashore, said meteorologists in Monterey. Historically El Nino patterns bring more rain to Southern California than the Central Coast, the meteorologists said. "Central California is right on the cusp," said Kevin Durfee, a meteorologist at the Hanford NWS office. Whether Central California gets torrential rain or just a good soaking depends on where in the Pacific those engines set up shop. "The correlation (between El Nino and heavy rainfall) is better for the southern part of the state," said Charles Bell, a meteorologist at the NWS Monterey office. But if you wager, place a bet on Central California have a wet fall, winter and into spring 2016. Here's why: In the winter of 1982-83 an El Nino pattern set up that had the same strength as the current pattern and it turned out to be the wettest... And then again in 1997-98 an El Nino of similar strength formed and brought torrents to Northern and Central California. Source: www.thecalifornian.com
