The brunt of the storm is anticipated in the county Sunday into Monday, with a high potential for flash flooding in the mountains and deserts.
The exact path of the storm remained in flux Friday, with forecasters noting that even slight shifts in its track could dramatically impact rainfall totals."Regardless of the exact track and intensity of Hilary, which could continue to change in the coming days, it will bring a substantial surge in moisture into Southern California, with heavy rainfall and a high potential for flash flooding, especially for the mountains and deserts," according to the National Weather Service.
The NWS issued a flood watch that will be in effect from Saturday morning through Monday in the San Diego County mountains, deserts, valleys and coastal areas, along with the Riverside County mountains and valleys, the Coachella Valley and San Gorgonio Pass near Banning. "In addition to the rainfall and flooding threat, another concern is the potential for strong east winds Sunday and Monday," according to the NWS."The wind threat will be more dependent on the track of Hilary. Should Hilary have a more westerly track, the wind threat would likely be greater, and if the track is more easterly, the threat would be less.
Hilary is unlikely to still be packing hurricane strength by the time it reaches Southern California, but it could still be classified as a tropical storm. The NWS noted that the only time a tropical storm made landfall in California in the 20th Century was in September of 1939.
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