Heavy rain, wind headed to Sonoma County after bone-dry February

Grape growers and livestock ranchers welcomed the rain that started falling Wednesday afternoon, capping a near-record dry February - normally a wet winter month - in which Santa Rosa got 3 percent of average precipitation.

The storm was expected to intensify overnight, with the heaviest rain impacting this morning’s commute while setting the stage for truly wet winter conditions, with rain, possible thunderstorms and hail along with strong winds through Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

A wind advisory for the North Bay and San Francisco Bay Area was set for 2 a.m. to 10 p.m. today, with winds from the south at 15 to 30 mph and gusts over 45 mph, threatening to blow down trees and power lines, the weather service said.

The storm, considered a moderate system, will bring about 1.75 inches of rain to Santa Rosa through Saturday, with 2 to 4 inches falling in the coastal mountains, meteorologist Anna Schneider said.

There’s a long way to go to make up for a bone-dry February and a rainy season that has fallen far below average. Officials aren’t calling it a drought, nor are they offering much hope for a so-called “March Miracle” to make up the shortfall.

“It’s happened before,” said Joe Pozzi, a Valley Ford sheep and cattle rancher, standing in the rain Wednesday. “You gotta be optimistic. It looks good right now with these clouds coming in.”

Ponds on west county livestock ranches are about half full, he said, and grape grower Steve Dutton said his vineyard reservoirs are two-thirds to three-quarters full, causing concern should freezing weather prompt the need to spray the vines for protection against frost.

“There’s the month of March left,” he said. “We’re hoping it will be strong.”

However, Accuweather, a private company that does long-range forecasts, has March delivering a total of just about 3 inches of rain to Santa Rosa.

Santa Rosa received 0.19 inches in February, tying with 1971 for the second-driest February on record, Schneider said. The driest ever was February of 1953 with just 0.08 inches.

The 30-year average for Santa Rosa in February is 6.4 inches.

Since the official rainy season began Oct. 1, Santa Rosa has recorded 13.15 inches, about half of the 26.97-inch average. Last year at this time, the city had just more than 52 inches in a drought-busting season.

For the calendar year, Santa Rosa has 6.84 inches of rain, also about half of the 13.22-inch average.

“We probably won’t catch up to the water-year average,” Schneider said.

The Climate Prediction Center expects “above normal” precipitation over California in March, she said.

The Sonoma County Water Agency would like to see a wetter-than-average March, but isn’t worried this year about supplies of Russian River water to 600,000 customers in Sonoma and Marin counties, spokesman Brad Sherwood said.

“Bottom line for our water supply is our two reservoirs are very healthy right now and so we will not be saying that ‘D word,’?” he said, referring to drought.

Lake Sonoma northwest of Healdsburg and Lake Mendocino near Ukiah both hold more than 80 percent of their water supply pool.

Water agency customers are continuing the practices adopted during the state’s five-year water crisis, Sherwood said.

“Our community has remained vigilant in keeping their water use at drought levels,” Sherwood said.

Dutton, who farms 1,200 acres of wine grapes, isn’t comfortable with his reservoir levels and no major storms in sight.

“It’s a bit nerve-racking,” he said.

When the mercury drops below freezing, many growers count on spray irrigation to protect freshly budded vines, Dutton said.

His vineyards haven’t had bud break yet, so he has a margin of safety.

Dutton’s home ranch in Graton has measured 17 inches of rain for the season, compared with 72 inches at this time last year.

At a Dutton vineyard along Green Valley Road, vineyard manager Jeff Carlton said he had pumped groundwater into a reservoir to raise the level without rain.

Livestock ranchers count on spring rains to stimulate grass growth in their pastures, Pozzi said. Wednesday’s rain was a “huge relief,” he said, but ranchers are hoping for enough rain to saturate the soil and deliver runoff to stock ponds.

Concerns about the storm’s possible impact on the burn areas will put Santa Rosa public works crews on patrol and on standby Wednesday night in case issues such as slides occur, said Paul Lowenthal, Santa Rosa’s assistant fire marshal.

The city recently paid for installation of 1,400 protective barriers in the burn zone to block debris from getting into storm drains and creeks, Lowenthal said.

“We need to make sure all the work we have been doing in the last four months continues to hold,” he said.

For folks yearning to see the sun, Sunday is expected to be mostly sunny with a high near 55.

Staff Writers Christi Warren and Randi Rossmann contributed to this report.