Summer temperatures expected early this week, then back to autumn weather and rain

Summer officially ended more than a month ago, but Southern Californians can expect more warm weather this week, followed by the return of cooler fall temperatures and even a rainstorm later in the week.

Tuesday’s temperatures are expected to be in the high 70s to mid 80s in some areas of the valleys across Los Angeles and Ventura counties, about 5 to 10 degrees cooler than the sweltering, summer-like weather Monday.

Along the coast, temperatures will be in the 60s to 70s until midweek — still around 10 to 20 degrees higher than normal for this time of year.

Wednesday will be even cooler as a rainstorm approaches, expected to arrive late Wednesday and peak sometime Thursday, tapering off by the end of the week. The coastal and valley areas will receive around 1 to 2 inches of rainfall, and the foothills should expect between 2 and 4 inches.

“It’ll definitely be a pretty good storm,” Rich Thompson, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Oxnard, said Monday.

While there’s some risk for the burn scars across Los Angeles, Thompson said forecasters are waiting until later in the week for storm models to develop before ringing the alarm. “Not a great concern right now, but it’s definitely there,” he said.

There’s some risk of flooding, especially in low-lying areas and urban roadways, but nothing specific to worry about in most places, Thompson said. The rain even could end up being a helpful follow-up to the precipitation from the past few weeks to stifle the possibility of wildfires.

“If the rainfall amounts work out as we’re expecting, this would be a great help to really put a kibosh, so to speak, on the fire season,” he said.

After the storm passes, the weekend is expected to be dry and cool, with highs in the 60s and low 70s — a bit below normal for the first time this year.