Forecasters predict rain for Southland by the end of the week
First comes the tease, with about .10 of an inch of rain predicted Wednesday night. Don’t get too excited, though, because Thursday will be dry.
But on Friday afternoon, if National Weather Service projections hold, comes the possibility of real rain in Southern California. As much as one to two inches of rain is expected on the coast and in the valleys, and double that in the mountains before it ends with showers on Saturday.
This Pacific storm will hit most of the state and bring much-needed snow to the Sierra, said Joe Firard, a meteorologist with the weather service. “Certainly the most we’ve seen in a long, long time,” he said.
To show how bad the state-wide drought has been, since the rainfall season started July 1, downtown Los Angeles has received 1.2 inches of rain. Normal for this time of year is 10.45 inches.
With the rains come worries of rapid runoff in areas that have been hit by recent fires, such as the Colby fire, north of Glendora, and the Madre fire above Azusa.
The runoff can carry with it mud, water, trees and anything else that gets in its way, creating the possibility of serious injury and major damage, Firard said. Fire officials in Monrovia, he said, are especially worried.
Until Wednesday, the weather will remain fair and mild in the Los Angeles area, with temperatures in the 60s.
Twitter: @gottliebjeff
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