SAN DIEGO – Enjoy the last bit of sunny, warm and dry weather Monday because Southern California will be dealing with several days of stormy weather.

A series of strong storm systems will unleash high winds, cold conditions and consistent rain and low elevation snow in San Diego County starting Tuesday evening through early next week. 

The first impact will be intense westerly winds spanning from the coast to the deserts. Beaches could get 25 to 35 mph winds with gusts of up to 60. This will make for hazardous travel conditions and could likely cause delays at San Diego International Airport.

In desert and mountain communities, high winds of up to 90 miles per hour are possible. Strongest winds are expected Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.

Rain and low elevation snow showers begin late Tuesday evening, but heavier precipitation is expected Thursday through Saturday.

By the early next week, coastal areas could pick up two to three inches of rain with up to five inches in some inland valleys. 

Most of the precipitation will be snow for our mountain communities as snow levels lower to 2,000 feet Wednesday morning. A Winter Storm Watch is in effect Tuesday through the weekend due to heavy snow and high winds up to 90 miles per hour for places such as Julian, Pine Valley, Mt. Laguna and Palomar Mountain. Up to two feet of snow is possible.

Messy, high surf will also impact beaches. Large breaking waves 8 to 10 feet with local sets up to 14 feet are possible. 

Temperatures will plummet this week only reaching mid 50s for beaches and low 50s for inland valleys and mid 30s for the mountains each afternoon.

It’s likely this will be a prolonged winter storm event so please be careful, stay up to date with your latest forecast and limit travel if you can.