It hasn't been a wet storm but what it lacked in moisture it more than made up for in velocity. Strong winds have been blowing across San Diego County since Tuesday morning but peaked last evening between 5 and 9 p.m. Ranchita, located on the eastern side of Mt. Laguna measured the strongest gust at 8:07 - 55 miles per hour.
Many areas have been hit by winds exceeding the 40 mph mark, including Julian, Mt. Laguna, and various spots in the Anza-Borrego State Park. Even Wednesday morning, gusts between 35-50 mph were recorded in the mountains and deserts, but, as yet, no damage has been reported.
The wind warning that was up overnight for these areas expired at 11 a.m. and was replaced by a "high wind watch". It will remain in effect through Wednesday.
Even west of the mountains there have been some pretty strong gusts. Tuesday night and throughout the morning hours winds were consistently howling between 20-30 mph. Off-shore winds causes the ocean to churn up some froth and whitecaps and waves over 10 feet were reported at the beaches north of Pt. Concepcion. For this reason, a small-craft advisory is expected to remain in place through Wednesday.
As for rain from this winter-like storm, it's been minimal at best. Only a few spots were able to measure enough rainfall to get a reading and in those places they received only a few hundredths of an inch at best and most of it fell Tuesday afternoon and evening. There was a steady flow or rain clouds moving rapidly over the county Wednesday morning but they only produced a smattering of light, brief sprinkles.
The storm is moving rapidly toward Colorado. Blizzard conditions are expected tonight in the mountains there, as well as in Utah and Wyoming.
