Orange County gets brief respite from rain Monday before lighter bout of showers passes through

Orange County saw a brief respite from heavy rain resulting in a road closure and other headaches along the coast over the weekend, but light showers were forecast to return Monday afternoon, building up to another downpour by Wednesday.

The storm led to flooding that shut down Pacific Coast Highway between Saturday morning and Sunday morning, Huntington Beach spokeswoman Jennifer Carey said. A berm raised to fend off high waters along Sunset Beach has held so far.

Heavy flooding at 17th Street and Pomona Avenue in Costa Mesa damaged at least one vehicle parked there, resident Sara Brock Rollins said. There were reports of falling tree limbs and pools of standing water in Newport Beach but no major emergencies in the streets in that city, Newport Beach Fire spokesman Josh Leith said. Rain appeared to have loosened soil around a eucalyptus tree that was knocked down by high winds at Bluebird Park in Laguna Beach, city spokeswoman Cassie Walder said.

Rain apparently loosened soil around a Eucalyptus tree that was knocked down by high winds at Bluebird Park in Laguna Beach as a historic storm passed through Southern California over the weekend.

Skies partially cleared to allow for highs in the mid and upper 50s at the start of the workweek, National Weather Service Meteorologist Brandt Maxwell said. But temperatures will creep back down over the next few days, with another bout of precipitation arriving in southern Orange County by Monday evening.

“It should go on for a few hours as nothing too heavy, mostly off and on,” Maxwell said.

Light showers should taper off by Tuesday afternoon. But yet another, slightly heavier bout of rain will pass through Southern California later that night. That should dump between half an inch to an inch of rain in most parts of Orange County before leaving the region Wednesday night.

Clouds are expected to part allowing for sunshine and warmer weather on Thursday and Friday. Highs should be in the 60s by Thursday, Maxwell said.

This week’s showers appear to be an echo a historic storm that prompted a blizzard warning in Southern California. Hail had been reported in portions of Orange County, along with lows in the 40s last week.

After this week, early weather models suggest Orange County may receive even more precipitation as soon as Monday, according to NWS Forecaster Noel Isla.

“It’s not over yet,” he said.

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