Yet Another Rainstorm Rolls In : Weather: Capistrano Beach homes are posted with ‘slope failure’ warnings as Southland braces for more precipitation. The threat of new mudslides looms.

More rain is expected today from a storm that forecasters say could cause more slides along Southern California’s already sodden hillsides.

The new storm probably will not be as powerful as the one that caused widespread damage earlier this week, but geologists say it doesn’t take much these days to set the saturated slopes in motion.

Dean Jones, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., said that between one-half inch and an inch of rain should fall in the coastal areas and perhaps twice that much in the foothills and mountains before the storm moves on to the east on Saturday.

“That means there’s definitely a chance of more mudslides,” he said Thursday. “Any time you get more than half an inch of rain on ground that’s already saturated, there’s the potential for mudslides.”

Letters describing the “potential for another significant slope failure” were posted on the doors of 92 oceanfront homes in Capistrano Beach, but most residents said they didn’t believe there would be another massive landslide like the one that destroyed five homes on the 75-foot bluffs above them Monday.

“We’re not moving away from our views,” said Jack Emlet, whose home at the base of the bluff overlooks the sea. “Forget it.”

Mike Martin, a spokesman for the Santa Fe Railroad, whose tracks remain buried by debris from Monday’s slide, said geologists are warning that another major slide could happen at any time.

“All of them are in agreement: The situation is extremely fragile,” Martin said. “What everyone is concerned about is that there are sections to the north and south of the slide that haven’t come down yet that are extremely unstable.”

Officials said that the pile of earth, which covers about 300 feet of Pacific Coast Highway up to 20 feet deep in some places, moved about two feet toward the homes at the base of the bluff on Thursday.

Elsewhere, a rockslide at about 9 a.m. Thursday fell across Malibu Canyon road about two miles north of Pacific Coast Highway in the Malibu area, cutting off traffic in both directions. Despite the efforts of Caltrans crews, the road remained blocked throughout the day.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors announced that the county has been included officially under a State of Emergency declared by President Clinton because of the recent floods and mudslides.

The action will allow residents to apply for low-interest loans from the federal Small Business Administration. And local governments will be able to recoup some of the costs associated with damage to public property.

Jones said rain was expected to begin falling across the Los Angeles Basin before dawn today, increasing in intensity, with the possibility of a few thundershowers, as the day progresses.

“The showers will continue into Saturday, but by Sunday, things should be improving,” he said. “From then through Tuesday, the whole area should dry out a bit.”

However, three partly sunny days in a row seem to be about all Southern California can expect this winter.

“There’s another storm system up in the Gulf of Alaska,” Jones said. “It’s moving pretty slowly right now, but by late Wednesday, Southern California could get some more rain.”

The seasonal rainfall total at the Los Angeles Civic Center was 23.58 inches Thursday, compared with a normal season’s total for the date of 10.59 inches. The high temperature was 60 degrees, following an overnight low of 48. Highs today and Saturday should be mostly in the low 60s, with a gradual warming trend starting Sunday that could see top readings in the upper 60s by Tuesday.

Times staff writers Frank Messina and Len Hall in Orange County contributed to this story.