February was the hottest on record in San Diego since record keeping began in 1874, the National Weather Service reported Monday.
The 74.5-degree average daytime high in February surpassed the record set in 1980 by nearly 4 degrees. The unusual warmth continued a trend seen over the past 24 months: 2014 and 2015 were San Diego’s two hottest years in recorded history.
February was also among the driest in the record books, with 0.05 of an inch of rain recorded at Lindbergh Field.
The culprit was a massive high-pressure dome that pushed temperatures as high as 25 degrees above the average and blocked storm systems from entering the region.
Starting Sunday and continuing at least through Monday, a major change in the weather pattern is expected to take shape, the National Weather Service posted on Facebook.
“A trough of low pressure is likely to bring rain, mountain snow and increasing winds for the mountains and deserts,” meteorologists stated.
There’s a potential for 1 to 2 inches of rainfall along the coast and valleys and several inches of snow in the mountains, according to forecasters.
“With the jet-stream looking like it will finally be directed towards California, there is the potential for more storm-systems to occur after this Sunday's precipitation,” meteorologists said.
