Christmas Eve storm to bring more rain plus freezing temperatures

A holiday storm system is bringing yet more rain to Fresno leading into Christmas, and later the central San Joaquin Valley is going to feel the burn of some cold temperatures, said Carlos Molina, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Hanford.

The temperature Thursday is expected to top out at 49 degrees and drop to 43 degrees by midnight, and then drop even lower by sunrise Friday morning, hitting about 39 degrees.

Fresno has already had its fair share of rainfall this week, but it’s not over yet. On Christmas Eve, the National Weather Service is expecting 0.5 of an inch of rain between noon and midnight. After drenching Fresno, the clouds will carry the rain southeast of Fresno.

Snowfall is expected in areas like Oakhurst and Auberry, Molina said.

In the early hours of Christmas morning, there will still be some scattered showers, but mostly, the Valley can expect that “Christmas will just be a cold, cloudy day,” Molina said.

The high for Friday will be 47 degrees and bottom out at 36 degrees.

After the skies clear, weekend temperatures will drop below freezing in Fresno. Saturday morning the temperature will dip to a frosty 31 degrees, and Sunday morning will be even colder at 30 degrees.

For more rural areas, weekend temperatures will be in the mid- to-upper 20s. Molina said places outside of the Fresno metro area, such as Caruthers and Mendota, will have chilly temperatures around 26 and 27 degrees over the weekend.

This story was originally published December 23, 2015 at 7:14 PM with the headline "Christmas Eve storm to bring more rain plus freezing temperatures."