Temperatures Dip, Storm Drenches Region; Heavier Rainfall Due Today

After a burst of sunny, warm weather last week, Angelenos had to bundle up and dig out their umbrellas Sunday as temperatures plummeted and rains pelted the county.

Two storms, the first arriving Friday and the second Sunday, cast a pall over the region. Steady rains started Sunday afternoon. The heaviest rainfall is not expected to let up until late today, meteorologists said.

Most of the showers will occur along coastal areas and in the lower San Fernando Valley, said Ray Tanabe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Foothills in the Burbank and Pasadena areas are expected to be particularly hard hit, with 3 to 5 inches of rain by the time the storm is over Wednesday.

The county’s mountain areas may experience up to 24 inches of snow in the highest altitudes. There is also a 10% to 20% chance of thunderstorms today, said Alan Shoemaker, a meteorologist at Weather Central, a private forecasting firm.

After the storms clear, temperatures are expected to warm up slowly, with highs in the middle to high 60s by next weekend, Shoemaker said.

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The adverse weather conditions may have increased traffic accidents over the weekend.

During a 24-hour period, there were 868 traffic accidents on the freeways and highways of Los Angeles County, said Officer Charles Blair, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol. A week before, when the skies were clear, there were only 630 accidents during a similar time frame.