Winter storm temporarily floods March Air Reserve Base Published Jan. 25, 2010 By Capt. Ashley Norris 452nd Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, Calif. -- March ARB was pounded with .65 inches of rain in under one hour in the afternoon, Jan. 19, 2010. The sudden deluge of rainfall temporarily flooded gutters, drains and streets. The only significant damage March suffered was when the large amount of debris collapsed a section of fence along the southeast perimeter of base. Chief weather forecaster Mark Ditter declared a tornado warning the afternoon before because, "we were seeing rotation on radar." Rotation on Doppler radar is indicative of tornados, said Mr. Ditter. These were the same storm clouds responsible for the quick and heavy rainfall. The tornado warning was lifted after less than one hour. The civil engineers at March were busy right after the rainfall checking drains and areas that typically flood to make sure that the water cleared the drains, said Ryan Wood, Deputy Base Civil Engineer. "If we know the rain is coming we'll make sure those areas are clear," said Wood. "This storm track has been almost completely nonstop," said Arjuna Hutchins, a weather forecaster and observer. It is a combination of events that has created this extreme weather system, said Hutchins. First, the warm weather in early Jan. was due to a blocking pattern. Once the blocking pattern left, the weather opened up to allow in the jet stream. The second event was the jet stream moved to point directly at Southern California. This combination of events created a continuous deluge of storm systems, said Hutchins. The final tally from the day's rains was 1.01 inches of rain and winds of 22 knots.