Rain’s Down, Surf’s Up, More’s Coming; Maybe a Break Wednesday

While the storm that hit the Southland over the long weekend failed to deliver much in the way of rain, lagging swells it created offshore were expected to reach local beaches with some force this morning, forecasters said.

“We’re going to see a lot of 5- to 8-foot waves,” said Sean Collins, a forecaster for Huntington Beach-based Surfline.com. Waves may reach 12 feet in some areas, including Huntington Beach, he said.

Collins cautioned people to stay off jetties, especially in the morning when the swells are expected to peak.

As for surfers, bigger is not always better.

“It is kind of like skiing,” Collins said. “Snow is good, but if there is so much snow that it turns into an avalanche, that is not good.”

Light rain and moderate snow continued to fall in Southern California on Monday, with forecasters predicting more on the way.

The National Weather Service said high-altitude, jet-stream winds are continuing to funnel winter storms through Southern California, with rain and snow expected Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

However, none of these storms is expected to be as strong as the one that dumped up to 7 inches of rain in the foothills and up to 6 feet of snow in the mountains a week ago.

Only 0.18-inch of rain had fallen in downtown Los Angeles by 4 p.m. Monday. Westminster received 0.03-inch.

As much as 7 inches of new snow were reported on top of the 7-foot base at Mt. Baldy, with an additional 3 to 4 inches expected above 6,000 feet overnight.

Forecasters said there could be a few scattered rain and snow showers this morning before skies clear around noon. Temperatures are expected to range from the mid-50s to the low 60s, with lows in the 40s.

Wednesday should be dry, but the next storm is expected to roll in Thursday afternoon, with precipitation continuing, off and on, through Friday.