Rain showers finally fall on Newport-Mesa area

The clouds opened over Newport-Mesa late Friday night and continued off and on through Saturday, as Orange County enjoyed its first significant rainfall in nearly two years.

In the 24-hour period leading up to 8 a.m. Saturday, Costa Mesa collected 0.67 inches of rain and Corona del Mar 0.71 inches, according to the Orange County Watershed and Coastal Resources Division. The division did not have a listing for Newport Beach as a whole. Jon Lewengrub, an environmental resource specialist for the division, said the storm was Orange County’s first rainfall since April 23 and its largest since Feb. 28, 2006.

“Once it hit the coast, it petered out,” Lewengrub said. “But it’s still a nice bit of difference.”

Lt. Dale Birney of the Costa Mesa Police Department said some areas of the Westside had suffered flooding during the night, due to the streets being slanted downhill. At one point, he said, officers responded to a woman whose car had stalled in one of the flooded areas.

“She was actually standing on top of her van, and the water was up to the window area,” Birney said.

By 9 a.m., the rain had mostly stopped, although there were occasional brief showers throughout the morning and afternoon. The National Weather Service predicted no more rain for the rest of the week in Costa Mesa or Newport Beach.

— Michael Miller