Storm Watch: Road closures and weather warnings across the Southland

The Southland is in the grip of another winter storm packing heavy rain, with flash-flooding possible in some locations.

"A trough of low pressure with an associated atmospheric river will bring widespread precipitation, along with gusty westerly winds, in the mountains and deserts, beginning Tuesday and going through Wednesday," National Weather Service officials reported.  "Rain is expected to spread across the area Tuesday, then decrease from the northwest Wednesday afternoon and evening."

A Flood Warning in effect for the Conejo Creek in Camarillo through 8 a.m. Wednesday was extended to 10 a.m.

Storm-Related Road Closures: 

Early Wednesday morning, flooding in the Sepulveda Basin prompted closures:

• Victory Blvd and Woodley Ave
• Burbank Blvd and the 405 Freeway
• Burbank Blvd and Hayvenhurst Ave
• Burbank Blvd and Balboa Blvd.

• Caltrans announced as of 6 a.m. Tuesday State Route 2 is closed from Mt. Wilson Road to Big Pines Highway
• State Route 39 is closed starting at San Gabriel River Bridge in Azusa. 
• State Route 33 is closed from Matilija Hot Springs Road to Lockwood Valley Road

• Southbound lanes of Pacific Coast Highway from Seapoint Street to Warner Avenue in Huntington Beach are closed by flooding.
• A mudslide prompted the full closure of Pacific Coast Highway from Beach Road south to Camino Capistrano in Dana Point early Wednesday morning. 
  

• Three apartment buildings in San Clemente were evacuated Wednesday morning in the 1500 block of Buena Vista due to a landslide. Buena Vista was closed between Avenida Florencio to Calle Colina.

• Northbound I-5 offramp at Lincoln Avenue in Anaheim closed until further notice.
• Northbound I-5 offramp at Broadway in Los Angeles closed for flood control.
• Northbound I-5 offramp at Main Street in Santa Ana closed for flood control.
• Southbound I-5 offramp at Lankershim Boulevard in Sun Valley closed for weather-related conditions.
• Around 10 p.m. both sides of Pacific Coast Highway between Warner Avenue and Seapoint Street in Huntington Beach shut down to traffic. Re-opening times were not announced. 
  
• Cottonwood Road and Oakwood Road south of Ranchero Road in Hesperia closed for flooding.

• State Route 71 in Pomona: Northbound lanes were closed from Holt Avenue to the 10 Freeway Wednesday morning for pothole repairs after multiple vehicles were damaged. 

At around 4 p.m. Tuesday, a minor rockslide led to a full closure of SR-33 at Creek Road, which has since reopened. 

Evacuation Warnings & Orders:

Three apartment buildings in San Clemente were evacuated at about 8:20 a.m. Wednesday on the 1500 block of Buena Vista due to a landslide.  Orange County Fire Authority and Sheriff's personnel were on the scene. Buena Vista is closed from Avenida Florencio to Calle Colina. No injuries were reported.

Orange County sheriff's officials said the three buildings were each yellow-tagged, and damage was being assessed. A beach trail below the landslide between North Beach and El Portal has been deemed unsafe for public access. 

There were concerns about houses on cliffs in Newport Beach as the soil moistened from the rain. Multiple houses were red-tagged or yellow-tagged meaning they were at risk if a mudslide occurs. Pipes and pumps were still vacuuming water out of the hillside on Galaxy Drive in Newport Beach above the Back Bay Nature Preserve Wednesday morning. At least one home is red-tagged and neighboring houses are yellow-tagged due to the unstable hillside. Officials said the land continues to move as of Wednesday.

Evacuation warnings were issued for portions of Santa Barbara and Ventura counties for Tuesday. Warnings in Santa Barbara were upgraded to mandatory orders early Tuesday morning, but have since been downgraded.

Power Outages:

In Valley Village, more than 2,600 Los Angeles Department of Water and Power customers were without power Tuesday night. While crews are on scene working to fix the issue, they're also working to determine a cause. Power appeared to be restored by Wednesday morning.

Check Southern California Edison power outages here.

Check L.A. Department of Water and Power outages here.

What to Expect:

The inclement weather is in line with a pattern that has produced rain and snow across the region for the past month, almost weekly. Parts of the Inland Empire were drenched on Friday as a Pacific trough unloaded its energy before rotating eastward. The Weather Service posted a Flood Watch for the upcoming storm, beginning Tuesday afternoon and continuing until Wednesday afternoon, cautioning that "flooding caused by rain and snowmelt is possible."

Precipitation in the Riverside metropolitan area will be anywhere from three-quarters of an inch to 1.5 inches over the 24-hour period; 2 to 4 inches of rain are expected for the metro area of Los Angeles.

The mountain communities of Idyllwild-Pine Cove and Mountain Center, as well as the San Gorgonio Pass, were specifically referenced in the watch.

"Snow levels will rise above 9,000 feet Tuesday afternoon, then fall to around 6,500 feet Wednesday afternoon," according to the NWS. "That would mostly limit snowfall to above 7,000 feet and mostly on Wednesday afternoon."

Mountain communities have been contending with impassable roads and other hazards stemming from the weeks-long storm series. Although most Riverside County communities at higher elevations have dug out, communities in and around the San Bernardino National Forest north of the San Gorgonio Pass continue to deal with weather-related impacts and complications. 

After Wednesday, the region will catch a brief respite before weaker storm systems advance toward Southern California, bringing additional precipitation, most of it scattered and light, into the weekend.

Daytime temperatures in Riverside metro on Tuesday will be 65 degrees, while on Wednesday, the mercury will settle around 60, with lows in the low 50s Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

In the Coachella Valley, temperatures will top out in the mid to upper 70s Tuesday and Wednesday, with lows in the low to mid 50s, while in the Temecula Valley, temps will peak in the mid 60s on Tuesday and the mid 50s on Wednesday, with lows in the mid to upper 40s, according to the NWS. 

Early Tuesday evening, California Governor Gavin Newsom extended his state of emergency declaration to include Orange County, bringing the lengthy list of counties suffering from the aftereffects of the winter storms to 43 of 58.