#cloudburst

#cloudburst

The Springs fire in Riverside county has grown to 3,500 acres, prompting local authorities to issue several evacuation orders. The fire is concentrated in an area mostly north and east of Lake Perris, burning portions of the surrounding state recreation area.

The fire was reported in the 15900 block of Gilman Springs Road in Riverside County, just before 11 a.m. Gusty Santa Ana winds were forecast for much of Southern California on Friday.

"This is going to help fill that gap in minutes to hours lead time that's vital to know where the heaviest rain is going to hit," Ralph said. "And when and what communities are going to be affected so people in the preparedness community and water resource management community can take action to help protect people's lives and property."

The powerful March storms that drenched Hawaii produced more than 2 trillion gallons of rain and pushed precipitation levels to as much as 3,000% above normal in a 14-day period for this time of year.

Parts of the Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf could be slammed by strong to severe thunderstorms Thursday, bringing the potential for damaging winds, destructive hail and a few tornadoes.

Heavy rain and thunderstorms affected much of Greece, with southeastern areas experiencing the most severe conditions, including flooding and stranded vehicles.

Flash flooding has been a major problem in recent days in places such as Maui, Molokai and the Big Island, where rain had been falling between 1 and 2in (2.5 and 5cm) an hour overnight, according to the Hawaii emergency management agency.

The storm from Sunday into Monday has the potential to become a bomb cyclone, which occurs when central pressure drops at least 0.71 inches of mercury (24 millibars) in 24 hours or less. That rapid strengthening would generate an expansive and intense wind field.

The temperature at the Toronto airport reached a high of 17.6 C on Saturday, breaking an old record for March 7 of 17.2 C that was set in 1860. It says a weather station in the St. Catharines area recorded a high temperature on Saturday of 20.3 degrees, while further north in Wiarton, more than 40 millimetres of rain was recorded.

Flash flooding is a real risk and can occur quickly, without much warning. We urge people to steer clear of floodwaters and never drive through a flooded road regardless of how safe you think it may be.

When I spoke with emergency management officials last year, they all mentioned the same frustrating scenario. People ignore storm warnings until the precipitation starts falling, then suddenly everyone rushes out at once. The roads become congested with anxious drivers, accidents spike, and stores run out of essentials just when people need them most. But here's what really gets meteorologists worked up about this pattern. Modern weather forecasting has become incredibly accurate, especially for major winter storms.

Showers moving into the region from the Central Coast should bring steady rain to Ventura and Los Angeles counties Thursday morning, with frosty temperatures pushing snow levels lower than normal, potentially impacting commuters along the Grapevine, according to the National Weather Service. "Steady precipitation will taper off to showers by late this afternoon and become confined to the mountains by late tonight," the weather service posted in a Thursday morning forecast.

Californians looking to resume their weekly commute Tuesday awoke to see several major roads closed after heavy rains drenched much the state Monday - with the expected precipitation far from over. Among the closures was a section of Highway 1 through Big Sur, which state officials just weeks ago celebrated reopening for the first time in three years. The road closed Monday after rockslides left "debris in the roadway at multiple locations," according to the California Department of Transportation.

LIVE RADAR: Track storms as they move through the Bay Area with Live Doppler 7 Take a look at the chart above -- we will give each storm a number with 1 being the lightest type of storm and 5 being the most severe. This way you'll know what to expect. Number 1 means a light storm with 1/2 an inch of rain or less and likely lasting a few hours or less. Number 2 is a moderate storm with 1/2 an inch to one inch of rain forecast and could include scattered power outages.

"It will prove cold with some frost and ice in places on Friday morning, especially in the west and north," she said. "Munster and south Leinster will see cloud, but that will clear to leave dry and sunny conditions with a few isolated showers in the north and highest temperatures of 3C to 7C," she said. Friday night will prove mainly dry but very cold and frosty with some icy patches.