Orange County rain leads to flood watch for inland areas, Santa Ana Mountains
Rain and hail fell on parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties Thursday, leading to multiple flood watches.
"This system will bring a broad swath of moderate to locally heavy rain and snow (to) the area," according to the National Weather Service. "... Snow levels will fluctuate quite a bit as the southerly flow will raise levels to about 4,500 feet briefly on Friday afternoon. This could create a mixture of rain/snow at the I-5 Grapevine area before the precipitation turns back to all snow Friday evening."
Coastal and valley areas could get between 2 and 5 inches of rain during the storm by Saturday night, with 5 to 10 inches possible in the foothills. Forecasters said some areas could get rain falling at a rate of an inch per hour, particularly Friday afternoon and evening.
A flood watch will be in effect in Orange County, covering inland areas and the Santa Ana Mountains and foothills from Friday afternoon to Saturday evening.
A flood watch will also be in effect from Friday morning through Saturday afternoon for Los Angeles County beaches, the coastal region including downtown, the L.A. County mountains, Santa Monica Mountains and the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and San Gabriel valleys.
Mountain passes will also be impacted by snow, with 6 to 12 inches possible through the Grapevine section of the 5 Freeway.
"After the steady heavier precip starts to taper off Friday night, numerous showers with still a chance of thunderstorms are expected through Saturday evening," according to the NWS. "Locally heavy downpours are possible, however, there will also be brief periods of sunshine in between showers."
Temperatures will be in the 40s and 50s in most of the area, although they will drop into the 30s in the mountains and some valley areas, particularly at night, and into the 20s in the Antelope Valley.
High winds will make it feel even colder. Forecasters said strong winds will impact the entire region Friday and Friday night, strongest in the mountains and deserts. Gusts of 55 to 75 mph are anticipated in those areas, contributing to the blizzard-like conditions.
"Winds may drop off Saturday, so the Blizzard Warning may be downgraded early for some areas," forecasters said. "Expect whiteout conditions at times within the Blizzard Warning, mainly above 3,500 to 4,500 feet in elevation. Significant blowing and drifting of snow combined with the whiteout conditions will make driving very difficult to impossible, including for rescue crews.
