Showers predicted through late weekend

A slight chance of thunderstorms and showers are predicted for the central San Joaquin Valley floor starting late Thursday evening, and could drop around a tenth of an inch of rain, the National Weather Service said.

The storm is expected to dissipate starting late Friday evening, with small showers lingering throughout the weekend at higher elevations, according to Jim Bagnall, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Hanford.

Tioga Pass has been closed due to half an inch of snow as of late Thursday afternoon, with snowfall reported at elevations down to 7,000 feet.

“Trace amounts of heavier rainfall have taken place along the west side of the valley, near the San Luis Reservoir,” Bagnall said, “with evening showers and thunderstorms in the higher Sierras and Tulare County.”

Storms have kept Valley temperatures unseasonably cool. Thursday’s high of 69 degrees in Fresno was 17 degrees cooler than the seasonal average at 86. Friday’s temperatures are expected to be in the low 70s before warming up to the high 70s and low 80s throughout the weekend.

The Valley continues to be well short of normal rainfall, despite the recent string of spring storms. Since October, 6.41 inches have fallen on Fresno — well short of the seasonal norm of 10.99 inches for this time of year.

“Basically the storm will start winding down, tapering off and moving towards higher elevations by the weekend,” Bagnall said.

This story was originally published May 21, 2015 at 7:21 PM with the headline "Showers predicted through late weekend."