Year’s Strongest Storm Pounds Southland

The strongest storm of the year dumped between 1 and 2 inches of rain on much of the Los Angeles Basin on Sunday, boosting seasonal rainfall totals to nearly 80% of normal.

Downtown Los Angeles, the start and finish of the wettest L.A. Marathon on record, received slightly more than 1.75 inches of rain by late afternoon.

The downpours brought a flood of traffic accidents, jamming area freeways with eight SigAlerts within a matter of hours.

“So many lanes were blocked,” said California Highway Patrol Officer Karen Faciane. The rainfall was “extremely heavy” in some areas and caused some flooding, she said.

Rain and unsafe speeds were blamed for an accident that killed two men driving on a Santa Ana street early Sunday morning.

And the southbound Pasadena Freeway was closed for an hour and a half at Marmion Way when a car started a chain reaction crash by becoming airborne and landing on the center divider. No one was hospitalized in that accident.

Amy Talmage, a meteorologist for WeatherData Inc., which supplies forecasts to The Times, said snow was expected in the Antelope Valley and the foothills of inland valleys by this morning.

“This storm system is projected to be the coldest throughout the entire winter pattern,” Talmage said. “It came right off the Gulf of Alaska.”

She said rain showers should continue throughout the day, with showers decreasing tonight. West to northwesterly winds of 20 to 30 mph are expected, with some stronger gusts.

National Weather Service forecaster Bruce Rockwell said the storm brought 1.78 inches of rain to downtown Los Angeles in the 24-hour period ending at 4 p.m. Sunday.

Rockwell said the heaviest storm of the year pushed the seasonal rainfall total to 9.32 inches, closer to the normal level of 11.41 inches.

“We’re catching up pretty good,” he said.

Pasadena recorded the heaviest amount of rain from the storm: 2.62 inches. Burbank received 1.51 inches.

Los Angeles International Airport recorded 1.15 inches, while Long Beach received 0.86 inches.

Rockwell said the storm, colder than normal, would lower the snow level from 4,000 feet to 2,500 feet by this morning.

“A lot of hills around L.A. will get a dusting,” he said.

In the mountains above 5,000 feet, forecasters said, the storm could bring a foot of snow overnight.

Chains were required on the Angeles Crest Highway.

The storm knocked out power to 12,000 customers of Southern California Edison in the Long Beach, Compton and Monrovia areas. High winds brought down six power poles in Long Beach, said Edison spokesman Paul Klein. Police said numerous trees were blown over.

Power outages caused by the rain also were reported in South-Central, Boyle Heights and San Pedro, affecting about 2,000 customers of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

An additional 1,700 customers lost power in West Los Angeles after another circuit went out later in the day.

About 200 customers temporarily lost power from a downed line in San Pedro, said DWP spokesman Randy Hough.

Wind gusts of up to 60 mph forced Huntington Beach lifeguards to close the city’s pier for the first time this winter.

A heavy surf advisory was posted for west-facing beaches.

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Times staff writers Johnathon E. Briggs and Daniel Yi contributed to this story.