City Receives 87 Percent of Average Rainfall

Santa Barbara County residents were jumping over rain puddles again at the beginning of the week as another storm system moved through the area. Storms blowing through the county between February 13 and 18 dropped 2.05 inches of rain on the City of Santa Barbara. Despite a Valentine’s Day reprieve from wet weather, Santa Barbara County precipitation totals indicate that the city has already received 87 percent of the rain considered normal for a full rainy season. The city needs roughly 1.5 inches of rain to meet it average precipitation levels.

Goleta and Carpinteria also have below normal annual rainfall percentages, with 79 percent and 83 percent, respectively. Although San Marcos Pass has received the most precipitation this year, it has still has only received only 65 percent of the rainfall it gets in a typical rainy season, making it the area of the county currently needing the most precipitation. Santa Ynez is the only city in the county that has received more rain than usual. So far, it has rained 11.01 inches there, making its rainfall total for this season 10 percent above normal.

The recent rainfall has boosted Santa Barbara’s water supply this month, but water levels at Gibraltar Reservoir, Cachuma Lake, and Jamison Lake remain below last year’s levels. Only Twitchell Reservoir contains more water than last year.

Santa Barbarans will get a chance to enjoy some dry weather for a few days, according to weather reports from Weather.com and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Mostly sunny conditions are expected to prevail with highs in the upper 60s. A slight chance of rain returns again to the area on Sunday.