Christmas parades in Fresno, Clovis canceled due to weather. More rain is on the way
The 93rd annual Christmas parade in downtown Fresno and the Children’s Electric Christmas parade in Clovis scheduled for Saturday have been canceled due to the weather conditions while more rain is expected to soak the Fresno region throughout Saturday.
Organizers of the downtown Fresno parade announced the cancellation on its website.
“The safety of attendees, animals, and crew must always come first. We are sorry to those who have been inconvenienced by this cancellation,” the announcement says. “We will come back next year with a bigger and better parade.”
Organizers, however, say they still “want to get into the holiday spirit in downtown!” There is a tree lighting ceremony scheduled from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Dec. 9 at the Mariposa Plaza.
“Families can take pictures with Santa and more activities will be announced within the next week! We hope we will see you there!” organizers said.
The city of Clovis on Friday announced the cancellation of its parade on its Facebook page. The city said it lamented the cancellation due to weather-related safety concerns.
“While this is disappointing news, the safety of participants, volunteers and spectators is priority number one,” the city said. “We appreciate all the work that went into planning and organizing this year’s parade by the Old Town Clovis Kiwanis and we hope for more agreeable weather next year.”
But a Christmas tree lighting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Dec. 5 on Fifth Street, where there will be music, treats and “a special visitor from the North Pole.”
The city of Fowler has postponed its Christmas tree lighting festivities that were scheduled from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday. The celebration has been moved to the same time on Dec. 7, according to a city announcement.
Half-inch of rain
By Saturday morning, the Fresno area had seen 0.54 inches of rain in the past 12 hours, said Jeff Barlow, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Hanford.
Another half inch to up to an inch of rain is expected from 4 a.m. Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday morning, he said. Then from 4 a.m. Sunday to 4 a.m. Monday morning, an additional tenth to a quarter inch of rain is forecast to fall in the area.
“The rain today (Saturday) will be steady,” he said. “We are looking at just a good soaking rain.”
This is the kind of storm that “you always kind of hope for because it has some tropical moisture,” Barlow said.
The high temperature expected for Saturday is 58 degrees with a low of 53 degrees. For Sunday, a high temperature of 61 degrees is forecast with a low of 53.
For Monday, a high temperature of 58 degrees is expected with a low of 45.
“Once the ground is wet, we’ll probably see some fog over the next few days after the system cools down,” Barlow said.
Snow in the Sierra
In the Sierra Nevada, anywhere between 2 to 4 feet of snow is expected at elevations above 8,000 feet, Barlow said, and 1 to 3 feet of snow at elevations of 7,000 feet to 8,000 feet.
A concern is that there will be much rain on top of the snow, causing some of the snowpack to melt. The snowpack, he said, is critical for the summertime.
No flash flooding is expected in the areas that have been devastated by past fires.
