Winter Makes Its Entry With Cold and Snow

Winter made an authentic entrance Friday into Southern California as a massive Arctic weather system scattered light snow along the oceanfront from the Palos Verdes Peninsula to San Clemente and temperatures dropped close to freezing throughout much of the Los Angeles metropolitan region.

The snowfall in mountains farther inland was considerably heavier, forcing the California Highway Patrol to convoy traffic through the Gorman area on Interstate 5 for about four hours. The CHP said the storm triggered numerous accidents in the area, and dozens of vehicles were stuck in several inches of ice and windblown snow.

“It’s miserable, downright miserable,” said Jim Parson, a Caltrans spokesman based in Lebec. “We’ve got blowing snow and cold conditions and a number of cars spun out.” The snowfall was expected to end early today, but forecasters said clearing skies would probably bring even colder temperatures--with subfreezing readings predicted for many communities--this morning and Sunday morning.

Temperatures in the low 20s--cold enough to cause significant damage to citrus and avocado crops--were anticipated throughout the weekend in some of Southern California’s agricultural districts.

Forecasters said it will remain clear and get a little warmer--but not much--on Monday and on Christmas Day.

Snow dusted the foothill town of Glendora and the coastline communities of Seal Beach, San Clemente, Rancho Palos Verdes and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles about 8 a.m. Friday. The flurries melted almost immediately, but not before they startled residents accustomed to balmier weather.

“When I saw that it was snowing, I ran into my daughter’s bedroom and woke her up,” said Pauline White, a longtime resident of Rancho Palos Verdes. “I saw it snow here back in 1949, but she’s only 27, and I know she’d never seen snow in Palos Verdes before.”

It may have been that long since there was snow in the harbor area, but it has been less than 14 months since snow fell on other communities in metropolitan Los Angeles. The last time was on Feb. 7, 1989, when up to five inches accumulated in the Porter Ranch, Tarzana and Granada Hills areas.

In Orange County, where most of the Friday’s flurries fell along the coast, a few more snowfall reports were reported farther inland. One was at the Joplin Boys Ranch, a 60-student juvenile detention facility at the edge of the Cleveland National Forest.

Sheila Pierce, a spokeswoman for the ranch, said the heater at the ranch house quit about the time the snow started, forcing the boys to bundle up in 45-degree temperatures.

“We’re just making a little more hot chocolate,” she said.

Forecasters said the frigid, often blustery conditions were the product of a huge, slow-moving low-pressure system blanketing the Western half of the nation.

“The cold air has been spilling down out of the Arctic like heavy syrup, oozing slowly south into the United States,” said Rick Dittmann, a forecaster with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. “It’s been cold, and it’s staying cold.”

The Arctic weather mass plunged temperatures to record lows for the date as it moved south across California. Light snow was reported in a number of Central California communities where it is seldom seen--Sacramento, Monterey, Fresno, Madera, Bakersfield and Lompoc.

Pre-dawn temperature readings Friday included -22 at Truckee, -14 at Alturas, -8 at Susanville and 0 at Quincy. It was 17 at Redding, tying the all-time record there, set in 1937. It was 14 at Red Bluff, setting an all-time record. Gusting winds drove the wind-chill factor at the Redding airport down to -26.

It was 32 in San Francisco, breaking the record for Dec. 21 by three degrees.

Friday’s low in Los Angeles was a relatively warm 42 degrees, but the high for the day was only eight degrees warmer, far below the normal high for the date of 67.

And it was a lot colder than that in outlying communities.

Friday morning’s lows included 36 in Burbank, 34 in Van Nuys, 30 in Riverside, 26 in Lancaster and Newhall and 26 in Victorville.

This morning is expected to be even colder, with a low of about 37 at the Los Angeles Civic Center and readings in the 20s in some areas of the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys. Today’s downtown high should be about 55 degrees, with similar highs expected in most coastal communities.

WeatherData meteorologist Steve Burback said the lows in the metropolitan area should moderate slightly on Sunday, Monday and Christmas Day, climbing slowly into the mid-30s and lower 40s. He said the highs should climb gradually at the same time, reaching the mid-60s on Christmas.

Friday was the winter solstice--the shortest day of the year. The season began officially here at 7:07 p.m.

Times staff writer Nancy Wride in Orange County contributed to this story.