Storm May Soak Southland With Up to 4 Inches of Rain

After two days of drizzle and sporadic showers, Southern Californians on Friday faced the season’s first real storm, expected to arrive in the evening and unleash strong bursts of rain through much of today.

Forecasters predicted that 2 to 4 inches will fall before the storm moves out late this afternoon, leaving cloudy skies and cool temperatures.

“It’s a low-pressure system coming from south of the Bay Area, and it’s dragging with it a cold front through Southern California,” said Amy Talmage, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc.

“The Pacific moisture and energy associated with this system will cause periods of rain throughout the Los Angeles area.”

Safety officials geared up for the storm, especially in those parts of Ventura and Los Angeles counties where recent brush fires left hillsides denuded and prone to flooding and mudslides.

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for burn areas, noting that the ground in many places has already been saturated from the week’s earlier rain, increasing the danger of flooding.

In Arcadia, where a fire raked through the Chantry Flats area about a month ago, city employees were sandbagging slopes and installing barricades above mountain homes.

About 140 houses are in the potential flood path, 10 to 15 of which could be in serious danger if rainfall is as heavy as predicted, city fire officials said.

The Los Angeles County and Los Angeles city fire departments prepared to hand out free sandbags at local stations and were getting ready to deploy their swift-water rescue teams should anyone fall into rushing creeks or channels.

In Orange County, officials were girding for potential flooding in the Santa Ana Mountains.

“The rain won’t sink into the soil. It will just run off, taking the path of least resistance,” said Frank O’Leary, a National Weather Service forecaster.

But if safety officials were scrambling in anticipation of the storm, most residents apparently were not.

“Nobody’s been here to pick up sandbags all day,” said Capt. Mike McLaughlin at the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Malibu station.

“Nobody seems to be taking this seriously yet. But we have the sandbags, and they’re free, so we’ll be here when [residents] need them,” he said.

Winter storm warnings were in effect for the San Bernardino and San Gabriel mountains, according to the National Weather Service. Ski resorts in the San Bernardinos were predicting 2 to 5 inches of snow Friday night and today.

“Winter has finally arrived here . . . with chilly temperatures and, yes, even some snow,” a recording at Bear Mountain informed callers Friday night.

Los Angeles County lifeguards were bracing for adventurous beachgoers to test the expected high surf when the rain abates and were planning to warn people away if storm drains and overflowing creeks dump dirty, bacteria-laden water into the ocean.

“We’re advising people to check in with a lifeguard before getting into the water, and stay within sight of a manned tower. We can tell them where it’s safest,” lifeguard John Renaud said.

Today from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Services will open city maintenance yards, where residents can get up to 25 free sandbags and sand. Sandbags--but not sand--are always available at city fire stations, a department spokesman said.

Storm preparedness information is available at (888) 356-4661 or on the city Fire Department’s Web site: https://www.lafd.org.

Today’s temperatures are expected to be in the high 50s.

Once the storm ends, cloudy skies are forecast for tonight and Sunday.

Another storm may bring showers into the area late Monday into Tuesday.

Even with the latest rain, precipitation levels are well below normal for the season.

By Friday, Los Angeles had received just 2.24 inches for the season, compared with the 9 inches expected at this point in an average year, said WeatherData’s Talmage.