The Number

Did the rainy season pull us out of the drought? It depends on where you live. According to the National Weather Service, Burbank received 13.6 inches of rainfall between Oct. 1 and April 3, but the long-term average for that period is 15.6, so it was still a below-normal season. However, in Camarillo, 19.2 inches fell, compared to an average of 13.9 inches. “It seemed a lot of the storms really hit the coast, and if you were in the convective activity (thunderstorms) you got rain, but if you weren’t you didn’t,” said Bonnie Bartling, weather specialist at the service’s Oxnard office, which covers Los Angeles and three other counties. 19.2 Inches of rainfall in Camarillo As for the drought question, the U.S. Drought Monitor’s website reports the southern portion of Los Angeles County is now categorized as “abnormally dry,” while the northern section, as well as neighboring Ventura County, remains in “moderate drought” status. “The precipitation largely bypassed the lingering long-term drought across Southern California,” the site states. “We did get a lot of rain. But it has been five years of drought, and we’ve had one good rainy season,” Bartling said. “There are still some places in SoCal, and more in Ventura County, where we are in a lesser drought, but still in a drought.” The good news is that Northern California, which contains the bulk of the Sierra Nevada snowpack, received enormous amounts of water. Between Oct. 1 and the end of February, the Northern Sierras received 76.5 inches of precipitation (either snow or rain), compared to 34.7 inches in an average year. The California Department of Water Resources estimates that at the end of February, the state had received 190 percent of normal precipitation. Bartling noted that wildfires could pose a threat this year during the summer, but at least the fire season will start wet. – Joel Russell