Fresno hit by unexpected rain from thunderstorms moving into the foothills

Fresno was hit by unexpected rain from thunderstorms moving toward the foothills on Thursday night.

National Weather Service radar picked up showers and thunderstorms developing over the San Joaquin Valley, according to Carlos Molina, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Hanford.

Molina said that a dry thunderstorm was expected to move into the area with little to no precipitation expected but Fresno saw 1/100th of an inch of rain.

It was Fresno’s first rain since April 25 when the weather service recorded 0.15 inches.

Small amounts of hail were reported in northeast Visalia. According to Molina, the showers and thunderstorms were being pushed north into the foothills and were expected to be out of the Valley by 10 p.m.

Sporadic power outages were reported throughout Fresno during the thunderstorm. PG&E reported around 996 customers affected in Clovis and small pockets of customers in Fresno.

The rain didn’t make much dent in the heat. It was still 93 degrees at 9:30 p.m. at the Fresno Yosemite International Airport recording station. High temperatures through the weekend are predicted to hit 97 each day under clear skies.

This story was originally published September 9, 2021 at 9:44 PM.