STORMY WEATHER: Snow in Woodland Hills? Yes,...

STORMY WEATHER: Snow in Woodland Hills? Yes, it’s happened. And Van Nuys recorded 7.5 inches during the stormy January of 1949. . . . The Valley region is best known for heat, but cold weather blows in each year as well. Officials are already prepared to open the National Guard Armory in Encino as temporary shelter for the homeless. For more on cold weather trends and figures, see Valley Briefing and related stories on B2.

KICK-BOXER’S COMEBACK: They called him Benny the Jet because he spent so much time airborne during his kick-boxing matches. But when five-time world champion Benny Urquidez comes out of retirement next month against a champion 16 years his junior, he’s counting on maturity. “It’s not how hard you hit, it’s how right you hit,” the 41-year-old Sherman Oaks resident said. . . . In the Dec. 4 bout at the Mirage hotel in Las Vegas, Urquidez will fight for the world light middleweight crown (B1).

MULHOLLAND’S LEGACY: It was 80 years ago this month that, thanks to the power of water, the Valley changed forever. . . . On Nov. 5, 1913, the Los Angeles Aqueduct was opened, bringing water from the slopes of the eastern Sierra Nevada 338 miles away. At least 30,000 people gathered in Newhall Pass to watch the water cascade down into the Valley. William Mulholland, the city’s water superintendent, declared: “There it is. Take it.”

ON THE RUN: The Agoura High girls’ cross-country team failed in its quest for a fourth consecutive state championship but still walked off with some glory. Junior Amy Skieresz finished first and senior Kay Nekota placed second in the Division I race to help Agoura finish fifth. (C12)

THAI TRIBUTE: The Thai community honored Buddha and the rivers that sustain many Thai people at its own day of thanksgiving in North Hollywood. (B3)

Record Lows

All-time cold temperatures in the Valley area: Burbank: 22 degrees (Dec. 8, 1978 and Jan. 29, 1979) Lancaster: 2 degrees (Dec. 24, 1984) Woodland Hills: 18 degrees (Feb. 6, 1989) Source: WeatherData Inc.