It'll likely be a rainy, windy, cooler weekend for the Coachella Valley as Tropical Storm Rachel tracks inland from the Pacific Ocean.
The National Weather Service forecasts a little over half an inch of rain for the valley the morning of Sunday, Oct. 11. Southerly winds of 15 to 20 mph are also likely to swoop in, with gusts of up to 35 mph.
That's close to theroughly 40 mph wind gusts that resulted in the temporary evacuation of the Stagecoach Music Festival earlier this year. An electronic musical festival called Head Trip is planned for Indio's Empire Polo Club on Saturday and Sunday.
"Sunday is pretty much going to be your day of weather out there, whether it be rain, or winds, or what have you," said Paul Steward, a meteorologist in the weather service's
San Diego office.
Rachel, which was a hurricane but has weakened slightly to tropical storm status, has been moving toward Mexico and the United States over the last several days, bringing the first significant precipitation since the summer. Current forecasts show it likely making landfall in Baja California and weakening further, although it could track north to San Diego, which would result in more significant impacts.
"We’re hoping that the scenario is that the storm system stays far enough to the south that we get some beneficial rain out of it and not so much the wind," Steward said. "If we can get some beneficial rain out of this and it doesn’t happen too quickly, that would be better for everybody."
Still, he stressed the potential for flash floods and mudslides throughout the Coachella Valley. The mountains west of Palm Springs may receive around 1.5 inches of rain as the storm hits the area early Sunday.
In advance of the storm, the temperature is expected to drop to around 94 degrees in Palm Springs on Friday. Sunday should be much cooler, with a high of 82 degrees forecasted. NWS says a secondary low pressure system will follow the storm, bringing a slight chance of rain and even lower temperatures.
Monday and Tuesday may see highs of 79 degrees, with a 15% to 25% chance of slight rain on Monday.
That means the most intense part of the storm may hit the Coachella Valley in the middle of Head Trip, the electronic music festival put on by Goldenvoice, on Saturday to Sunday.
Still, artists are not scheduled to perform until after 3:30 p.m., meaning the rain will likely already have fallen before the tens of thousands of attendees enter the festival grounds. Headliner Swedish House Mafia won't take the stage until 10:30 p.m., well after the wind and rain is predicted.
But NWS says there may be some thunderstorms that build following the rain, causing more uncertainty for the festival.
Much remained unknown the morning of Thursday, Oct. 8, as the storm's path toward California had not yet been decisively determined.
A strong El Niño, which is caused by above-average ocean surface temperatures, is causing Rachel to track toward North America. Typically, such storms head west toward Hawaii.
"It’s a low probability," Steward said, "but there is that possibility that the system tracks further to the north and we definitely see more impacts from it."
Sam Morgen covers local government for The Desert Sun. Reach him at smorgen@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Remnants of Hurricane Rachel may bring rain to Palm Springs area
