An unusual weather system for July is bringing the chance of dry lightning and scattered showers to parts of Southern California this weekend, the National Weather Service said.
The early monsoonal moisture brought showers and storms across Orange County and the Inland Empire late Thursday and into early Friday, with the system expected to move into Los Angeles and Ventura counties by Friday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. If rain does materialize, it will likely be over the San Gabriel Mountains and foothills and the Antelope Valley.
Meteorologist Joe Sirard, with the weather service’s Oxnard office, said those storms bring with them the possibility of wildfires.
“There is dry lightning potential,” Sirard said. “Sometimes you might get a rain shaft with lightning, but the lightning can occur and strike outside of the rain shaft.”
Depending on the strength of the rain pockets and thunderstorms, the weather service also warned there’s a slight chance for localized flooding and strong winds that could accompany the lightning.
“We’re going to keep a close eye on things,” Sirard said. “If people hear thunder, it’s best to stay indoors or in a car. … Lightning is very deadly.”
Sirard said the conditions driving the rare thunderstorms aren’t the typical summer monsoonal pattern in which moisture flows from the desert southwest into Southern California. Rather, this one is fueled by a low-pressure system in northern Mexico, creating similar outcomes.
“Anytime during the summer when we get moisture at mid-levels in the atmosphere and some mechanism to help destabilize the atmosphere … [there’s a] slight chance of showers and thunderstorms,” Sirard said.
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