ReportWire

Tag: central coast

  • Southern California winter rains break records, with another storm on the way

    California’s already wet winter is breaking rainfall records, with another powerful storm moving in this weekend along with the threat of new flooding and mudslides.

    After a remarkable dry streak in 2024 that helped fuel last January’s firestorms, this winter is making up for it, with some areas already approaching average rain totals for the entire season.

    “It’s been an interesting season,” said Mike Wofford, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard. “We’re way above normal for precipitation.”

    The latest storm will usher in gusty wind, more precipitation and possible flooding in burn scar areas.

    The cold front moving into the state from the northwest is expected to reach the Los Angeles area by Saturday and bring rain and high-elevation snow through Sunday. In Los Angeles, the rain is expected to be less punishing than the previous storm that triggered significant flooding, road closures and rescues, but it will be heavier along the Central Coast, Wofford said.

    The one bright spot is fire conditions. With L.A. about to mark the first anniversary of the Palisades and Eaton fires, the wet winter offers some protections — at least in the short term.

    “The amount of rain that we’ve gotten is likely going to ensure that we’re not going to have any large fires in the next couple of weeks, but beyond that we really can’t say,” said David Acuña, a battalion chief with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. “If we were to transition into a dry spell, it does not take very long for those green and brown grasses to dry out completely.”

    A lot will depend on how much rain falls in the next several months, he added.

    The Los Angeles area has already seen higher-than-normal precipitation this rainy season, which began Oct. 1, with storms soaking the region each month with particularly strong systems hitting over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. The final rainy days of 2025 helped pull California almost completely out of drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. And that’s even before the wettest months of the year, traditionally January and February.

    The storm system was the first since 2006 to rain on Pasadena’s Rose Parade and ended up being a real doozy — toppling a host of daily rainfall records, several of which were set during that previous storm.

    In Oxnard, 1.09 inches of rain fell, breaking the previous New Year’s Day record of 0.83 of an inch set in 2006. In Sanberg, the record of 0.56 of an inch set in 2006 was broken by a whopping 1.25 inches. A record rainfall of 1.32 inches was set at Hollywood Burbank Airport on New Year’s Day, smashing the previous daily record of 0.35 of an inch, also set in 2006.

    At Long Beach Airport, a record 1.11 inches of rain fell, breaking the four-decade old record of 0.60 set in 1982. In Lancaster, 0.87 of an inch of rain fell on Thursday, breaking the previous record of 0.24 of an inch set in 2006.

    Thursday’s rainfall triggered flooding along the 5 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley, prompting officials to close lanes for several hours. In San Diego, a man and his young daughter were caught in their blue Jeep by fast-moving water and had to be rescued.

    In Orange County, the body of a woman was pulled from the Santa Ana River in Fountain Valley on Thursday afternoon. The woman had traveled about two miles in the rushing water before the Orange County Fire Authority’s swift water rescue team arrived. It’s not clear how she ended up in the water.

    In Sherman Oaks, hours of heavy rain on Thursday sent mud and debris flowing down a hillside at a residential construction site. No injuries were reported.

    The weekend storm is expected to bring 1 to 3 inches of rain to coast and valley areas and 3 to 6 inches to the foothills and mountains. Rainfall rates are projected to range from 0.25 to 0.5 inch per hour, but local rates of up to an inch per hour are likely, especially in foothill and mountain areas in Ventura County and farther north, which could cause flooding and mudslides, the weather service said.

    Snow levels will remain above 6,500 feet, although a rain-snow mix could drop down to 6,000 feet, especially Sunday night. Forecasters are predicting 2 to 6 inches of snow above 7,500 feet, with 9 to 12 inches possible on the highest mountain peaks.

    After heavy intermittent rain, crews work to clear a mud and debris flow that went into the backyard and down the side of a home in the 3900 block of Pacheco Drive in Sherman Oaks on Thursday. Two people were forced to evacuate. Southern California is heading into the new year with another round of rain and renewed flood risk.

    (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

    The weather service has issued wind advisories for higher-elevation areas of the Ventura and Santa Barbara county mountains, interior San Luis Obispo County and the Santa Lucia Mountains. Those advisories are in effect from Friday afternoon through Saturday evening and will probably be expanded into the Central Coast, forecasters said.

    The winds could be sufficiently strong enough to topple trees, given that soils are already saturated from previous storms, especially in the Santa Lucia range where gusts are expected to be the strongest.

    Los Angeles County Department of Public Health officials have warned the public to stay out of the water at beaches because of a rise in bacteria levels due to the rain. The advisory, which will be in effect until at least 4 p.m. Monday, could be extended if the rain continues.

    Forecasters say another, colder storm system is expected to hit the region between Monday and Tuesday. That storm could bring isolated thunderstorms with brief heavy downpours and hail, as well as snow levels down to 5,000 feet, according to the weather service.

    The weekend storm is expected to hit Northern California particularly hard with heavy rain bringing the risk of urban and roadway flooding and rising rivers and streams.

    On Friday in Corte Madera, an unincorporated town in Marin County, king tides were already resulting in significant flooding. Video posted on social media showed a resident surveying the damage by kayak.

    The start of the water year — from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31 — ranks in the top nine wettest for all official climate locations tracked by the weather service. It’s been the wettest ever start to the water year for several places including Oxnard and Santa Barbara.

    So far this season, downtown Los Angeles has received 11.64 inches of rain— roughly 82% of its normal rainfall for the entire water year, which runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

    Sanberg, in the mountains of northwest Los Angeles County, has had its wettest start ever to the water year dating back to 1934, having received just over 16 inches of rain through Wednesday. Typically, Sanberg sees 13.14 inches over the course of the entire water year, according to weather service data.

    “We’re certainly well ahead of the game,” Wofford said. “It does look like after we get through this last storm cycle we’re looking at several days of dry weather after that, perhaps as many as two weeks. So we could be in for a long dry spell.”

    Hannah Fry, Alex Wigglesworth

    Source link

  • SJPD veteran tapped as Watsonville’s next top cop

    WATSONVILLE – A San Jose police veteran is leaving the South Bay to take the reins as Watsonville’s next top cop.

    Jason Green

    Source link

  • New storm to bring more rain across L.A. County Monday

    New storm to bring more rain across L.A. County Monday

    Los Angeles County can expect to see rain across the region beginning Sunday night and continuing through Wednesday, with the latest winter storm system forecast to bring the heaviest rain and threat of flooding along the Central Coast.

    Compared with the historic storm that pummeled the region earlier this month, forecasters expect “much less rain” for the county this time but warned that the most intense precipitation will hit during the day Monday and Tuesday night. Over the next three days, downtown could see up to 2.4 inches of rain; Santa Clarita, 2.19 inches; Long Beach, 1.8 inches; and Torrance, 1.97 inches.

    The rain may not be as intense as some areas farther north, but there are still concerns about the prospect for flooding, landslides and mudflows — particularly in the Santa Monica Mountains and Hollywood Hills — because of the soaking Southern California received from the previous storm, David Gomberg, a weather service meteorologist in Oxnard, said during an online media briefing Sunday afternoon.

    A flood watch was in effect across broad swaths of California.

    “Debris flows, mudslides, and landslides could happen just about anywhere within the flood watch area, as even L.A. County — which is expecting somewhat lower rainfall totals — took the brunt of the last storm, leaving them more susceptible to this kind of activity,” the weather service office in Oxnard said Sunday night.

    Residents are urged to move parked cars out of low-lying flood-prone areas, to be alert for mudslides and rock slides on or below canyon roads and to prepare for possible flooding and power outages, the weather service said.

    The slow-moving storm system began moving into the Central Coast region Saturday night, bringing light rain to Santa Barbara and western San Luis Obispo counties, officials said. The second, more powerful wave of the storm had arrived in Santa Barbara by Sunday evening. Officials warned of gusty winds, an increased chance of thunderstorms, and the possibility of high surf and coastal flooding.

    By 8:20 p.m. Sunday, forecasters reported rainfall rates of between 0.3 to 0.5 inches per hour across the Santa Barbara area.

    The Central Coast is expected to feel the brunt of this storm, according to the weather service. Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo county foothills and mountain ranges could see 8 to 10 inches of rainfall. The city of Ventura can expect to see up to 3.01 inches, and the city of Santa Barbara 5.66 inches.

    High surf advisories are in effect through Tuesday across all beaches in the region, with waves of up to 20 feet expected in some areas. Strong rip currents are expected with large breaking waves at Morro Bay, Port San Luis and Ventura harbors.

    There is also a brief risk of “weak tornado activity” during this period in San Luis Obispo County, Gomberg said Sunday.

    The greatest threat for coastal flooding — particularly in Malibu and Santa Barbara — will be Tuesday morning, Gomberg said.

    The engine driving the storm system across the central Pacific is the jet stream — high-altitude winds in excess of 200 mph — which is expected to slow as it approaches the coast.

    Once the system has passed, the state will have a few days to wring itself out before the arrival of another possible system next weekend, Gomberg said, this time coming out of the north and potentially colder.

    Times staff writer Thomas Curwen contributed to this report.

    Priscella Vega, Rong-Gong Lin II

    Source link

  • California’s next big storm: When and where will rain, snow and flooding hit?

    California’s next big storm: When and where will rain, snow and flooding hit?


    A major atmospheric river storm bringing heavy rains, high winds and significant snow barreled into northwestern California early Wednesday and is expected to move south across the state over the next 48 hours.

    Statewide, officials are bracing for potential widespread flooding, dangerous travel in the mountains and even power outages.

    The system is the first of back-to-back storms that forecasters say could cause perilous conditions through next week, depending on the severity, strength and speed of the storm systems.

    This first storm is expected to be relatively fast-moving, dumping excessive rain and heavy snow primarily on Wednesday and Thursday before moving out of the area, a scenario officials hope will help minimize damage.

    Here’s the latest on when Californians can expect to see the storm’s impact:

    Wednesday morning

    After a dangerously windy night for much of the state’s northwest corner — and a high wind warning advisory remaining through 1 p.m. for much of the North Coast — showers began in Northern California early Wednesday.

    Rainfall is expected to pick up throughout the day across the North Coast, the San Francisco Bay Area and the Sacramento Valley, with much of the region under a flood watch through late Thursday or early Friday.

    But dangerous winds remain a major concern, with the National Weather Service issuing a high-wind warning for much of the North Bay and Central Coast through Thursday afternoon.

    “Given saturated soils, downed trees and resulting power outages are likely,” the National Weather Service’s Bay Area office warned on X.

    In the northern Sierra Nevada and other high peaks above 6,000 feet, heavy snowfall is expected to begin Wednesday morning, with a winter storm warning in effect through at least Friday. As the storm develops, snow levels are expected to drop through the rest of the week and snowfall rates could reach up to 2 inches an hour, according to the weather service. Up to 3 feet of powder is possible at the highest peaks.

    Wednesday afternoon

    As the storm moves south and east, much of the Sacramento Valley will enter a flood watch through at least Thursday evening, with forecasters warning of minor concerns, including ponding on roads and flooding along small streams or in poor drainage areas.

    Dangerous surf also will become a growing concern, with weather officials in the Bay Area warning of waves up to 26 feet high.

    Thursday morning

    By Thursday morning, showers will continue across Northern California, but the storm will take aim at Southern California and the Central Valley.

    The heaviest rain in Los Angeles and Ventura counties is expected Thursday, with up to 2 inches in most areas — though only moderate rainfall rates are likely. Currently, no flood advisories have been issued for the regions.

    However, a winter storm warning will be in effect beginning early Thursday for the Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino county mountains, including the San Gabriels, where the highest elevations could get up to 2 feet of snow. A few inches of snow are possible as low as 4,500 feet, and forecasters are warning that “travel may be difficult to impossible,” including along the 5 Freeway corridor.

    The southern Sierra expects heavy snowfall beginning late Wednesday and into Thursday — from 1 to 4 feet, depending on elevation — but heavy rainfall in the foothills could cause flooding and mudslides, the National Weather Service warned.

    Farther south and east, across much of Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, a flood watch will go into effect Thursday morning and run through Friday. With a slight chance for thunderstorms all day Thursday, forecasters warn that “excessive runoff may result in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams, and other low-lying and flood-prone locations.”

    Thursday night

    Showers and bands of heavy rain will continue across southwest California, from the coast to the mountains.

    Forecasters say snow levels will begin to drop Thursday night to about 4,500 to 5,000 feet, though heavy snow is not expected in those areas.

    Friday

    Much of the wind, flood and winter storm advisories will expire Friday, though lingering showers will remain in both Northern and Southern California.

    Weekend

    Saturday is expected to be a bit of a reprieve from precipitation — but officials say it won’t last long.

    A second strong, wet storm, more focused on Southern California, is expected to bring more rain and snow, beginning as early as Sunday and lasting until midweek.





    Grace Toohey

    Source link

  • Stretch of the Central California coast is about to be designated a marine sanctuary. What does that mean?

    Stretch of the Central California coast is about to be designated a marine sanctuary. What does that mean?

    A stretch of land that is expected to be designated as a national marine sanctuary by next year would preserve more than 5,000 square miles of ocean off California’s Central Coast.

    It was the dream of a Native American tribal leader who died before he could see it come to fruition.

    The proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary is not yet finalized, and the public can submit comments on the draft proposal through Wednesday. The sanctuary would span 134 miles along the coast from Hazard Canyon Reef, south of Morro Bay, to just south of Dos Pueblos Canyon, which is home to one of the largest historical Chumash villages. The designation would protect a 5,617-square-mile area.

    The designation would prohibit dumping matter into the sanctuary, disturbing cultural resources, drilling or producing oil, gas or minerals, and disturbing the seabed, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

    The NOAA is hoping to finalize a sanctuary designation by next year, which would add to the agency’s marine sanctuary system that already includes “more than 620,000 square miles of marine and Great Lakes waters from Washington state to the Florida Keys,” according to its website. The network encompasses 15 national marine sanctuaries.

    President Biden has endorsed the proposal as part of his America the Beautiful Initiative, which includes a goal to restore and conserve 30% of U.S. waters and land by 2030.

    The proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary would also protect marine life and cultural and archaeological sites under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act. Regulations would be imposed to protect water quality, habitat and species. The sanctuary would also protect the ecological qualities of the area including marine mammals, birds, fish, sea turtles, algae and other organisms, as well as rocky reefs, kelp forests and beaches.

    Fred Harvey Collins, the chair of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council and an ardent advocate for the protection of sacred Northern Chumash lands, submitted the nomination for the creation of the sanctuary, with the support of Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) and Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Alex Padilla (both D-Calif.). He died on Oct. 1, 2021.

    NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries issued a notice of intent to begin the designation process for the sanctuary in November 2021.

    The draft management plan outlines a framework for Indigenous and tribal collaborative management, providing an opportunity to incorporate Indigenous people’s traditions, values and knowledge.

    Summer Lin

    Source link