RECENT STORMS ARE A GOOD START

Much of state is now out of drought, but it's not out of danger in terms of fire, water.

- ALEX WIGGLESWORTH

THE STATE'S major reservoirs are now filled to 100% to 145% of average. Above, Pyramid Lake in Castaic.

Photographs by ERIC THAYER Los Angeles Times

A string of early season storms that drenched Californians last week lifted much of the state out of drought and significantly reduced the risk of wildfires, experts say.

It's been the wettest November on record for Southland communities such as Van Nuys and San Luis Obispo. Santa Barbara has received an eye-popping 9.5 inches of rain since Oct. 1, marking the city's wettest start to the water year on record.

And overall the state is sitting at 186% of its average rain so far this water year, according to the Department of Water Resources.

But experts say that despite the auspicious start, it's still too soon to say how the rest of California's traditional rainy season will shape up.

"The overall impact on our water supply is TBD [to be determined] is the best way to put it," said Jeff Mount, senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California's Water Policy Center. "We haven't even really gotten into the wet season yet." California receives the vast bulk of its rain and snow between December and March, trapping the runoff in its reservoirs to mete out during the hot, dry seasons that follow.

Those major reservoirs are now filled to 100% to 145% of average for this time of year. That's not just from the recent storms - early season rains tend to soak mostly into the parched ground but also because California is building on three prior wet winters, state climatologist Michael Anderson said.

A record-breaking wet 2022-23 winter ended the state's driest three-year period on record. That was followed by two years that were wetter than average for Northern California but drier than average for the southern half, amounting to roughly average precipitation statewide.