Soaked for a change

Deepa Bharath

Rain hammered the area Monday afternoon, causing huge backups on

the freeways during rush hour and whipping up large waves along local

beaches.

No major incidents were reported as a result of the downpour,

local public safety officials said. A rollover was reported on the

Costa Mesa Freeway north of Del Mar Avenue at about 4:15 p.m., but

officials said they did not know if it was caused by the rain.

The wet weather is expected to last through today.

“We’re getting some of the heaviest rain right now,” said Dan

Keeton, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in San

Diego, late Monday afternoon.

Officials expected as much as 1 3/4 inches of rain to fall by the

end of Monday.

Keeton said the rain was the result of a very strong Pacific jet

stream “pointing directly at Southern California.” While the storm

that hit Northern California over the last two days caused

significant wind damage in those areas, winds gusted at just about 25

mph in Newport-Mesa, Keeton said.

Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol officials in Newport Beach

said they had seen winds averaging about 31 or 32 mph with some winds

gusting at 40 mph.

“We don’t have a gale warning yet,” Sgt. Ron Peoples said. “But we

do have a small craft advisory that is likely to remain in place

until [today]. We got hit earlier than we expected.”

People added that although the waves have not looked too big in

Newport Harbor, they could be as large at 15 feet in the ocean. The

wind and the waves make it unfavorable for smaller boats to venture

into the ocean.

But people who braved the rain Monday afternoon said they actually

liked it.

“It’s a different weather pattern for us,” said Annette Shima of

Newport Beach, who was out grocery shopping. “We need the rain. We

need water.”

The rain is a “good change of pace” for Southern Californians,

Mary Morgan said.

“I was pretty well prepared for this,” she said. “Rain’s nice. It

adds to the flavor of the holidays.”

Locals can expect more of the same kind of weather this winter,

Keeton said.

“It’s typical for an El Nino year,” he said. “We’re definitely

going to have a few more good storms in the months to come.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.