Street scene with a wet intersection, a white truck, two workers with cones, and a stop sign.
The third in a series of winter storms will douse Stockton through Friday. (Photo by Sammy Jimenez/Stocktonia)

After back-to-back atmospheric river storms, a third, colder weather pattern is bringing more rain and gusty winds to Stockton, with showers expected to last through Friday.

The National Weather Service in Sacramento predicted showers and thunderstorms into Thursday evening and throughout the day Friday, although rain amounts aren’t expected to tally more than one-half inch over both days.

The latest storm will also bring more blustery winds to the region. The weather service issued a new wind advisory through 1 a.m. Friday for the central and southern Sacramento Valley, as well as the Delta and northern San Joaquin Valley. South winds are expected to reach 15-25 mph, with gusts up to 45 mph. 

A winter storm warning — upgraded from a storm watch — was also in effect at higher elevations, where snow levels were dropping as low as 1,500 feet. The Northern Sierra can expect to see 8 to 18 inches of snow above 5,000 feet and up to 3 feet at the peaks. Thursday evening into Friday morning will record the heaviest snowfall, with 1 to 2 inches falling per hour.

On Thursday morning, the weather service reported it was already snowing through the mountain passes.

The last week in Stockton has been a wet one. The first in a series of atmospheric river storms rolled in last Friday. It left only a smattering of rain, though — about half an inch over three days.

By Monday, a second, more-powerful storm descended on the region, bringing flood watches and gusty winds and nearly two-thirds of an inch of rain overnight. Freeway flooding and hazardous road conditions hit Interstate-5 and Highway 99 in the Stockton area on Tuesday.

Close-up of car tires on a wet street near a painted curb with reflective rainwater.
The gutters in Stockton were filled with water Thursday as the third in a series of storms brought more rain to the region. (Photo by Sammy Jimenez/Stocktonia)

This third storm is not expected to bring as much rain as the last one, with the weather service predicting only one-tenth to one-quarter of an inch through Friday.

But it is dropping the temperatures. Highs on Thursday and Friday are expected to top out in the mid-50s, and by Friday night and into Saturday morning, the low is predicted to dip to the mid- to low 30s. Patchy frost is expected Saturday morning and widespread frost is likely Sunday and Monday.