“A parade of Pacific storms will march on through the weekend,” says the Weather Channel, concluding one of the wettest Octobers on record in the Pacific Northwest and bringing additional relief to parts of drought-hit California. The heaviest rainfall is expected in Northern California and southwestern Oregon, with some rainfall in Los Angeles.
Some 81 percent of California, the top-producing agricultural state, is in drought, somewhat of an improvement from 97 percent at the start of this year. The Central Valley, the largest source of fruits and vegetables in the nation, remains parched, with conditions ranging from severe to exceptional drought, said the weekly Drought Monitor.
So far, this is the fourth-wettest October on record in Sacramento. For Portland and Salem, OR, this already is the wettest October ever. “Hopefully this pattern of low pressure systems moving into the West Coast will persist as we head through fall and into this winter. Snowfall, in particular, is important in the Sierra as far as the water supply for California,” said the Weather Channel.