Winter Storm Warning Has Southland Residents Braving Rain, Wind, Snow
PORTER RANCH (CBSLA.com) — A winter storm warning in effect until Saturday has many Southland residents braving the cold temperatures, along with the rainy, windy and snowy conditions.
KCAL9's Brittney Hopper reported from Porter Ranch, where blustery, gusty winds made it dangerous for drivers.
"We expected rain, but not wind, you know?" said a resident.
Granada Hills resident Harriet Kaplan said the cold front is unexpected.
"It's crazy. It's just like, what a difference a few weeks makes. This is unbelievable," Kaplan said.
At a Best Buy store in Porter Ranch, some people were waiting to be first in line for Black Friday. While they brought rain gear with them, the wind swept up their shelter.
"It's brutal. Really brutal. Our canopy literally flew away, so we're just making do with what we have," said a woman.
Along with the winds, snowfall was expected for the Los Angeles County Mountains, the eastern San Gabriel Mountains and the foothills of the Antelope Valley.
Drivers were warned to be cautious, as snow and wind will create hazardous conditions on the roadways.
In Wrightwood, KCAL9's Juan Fernandez reported that most vehicles required chains.
Fernandez also said that the snow could be especially good news for the tourism industry. Nearby ski resorts, along with stores, count on a good snowfall to drive their businesses.
Kim Raze and her family didn't expect to head out to Wrightwood this early in the season. Now they're staying all the way until Thanksgiving.
"This is an early snow. We weren't going to come up and our neighbor sent us pictures, showed us the snow early this morning, and after picking up [my daughter] from school this morning, we decided to come up," Raze said. "Just from people talking, this is supposed to be a great winter."
Said Raze's daughter, Daley: "I've played in the snow. And I tried to make a snowman."
