Heavy rain to hit Southern California; thousands flee flooding in Central Valley
LOS ANGELES — A weary, storm-soaked California is bracing for another bout of heavy rain, power outages and potential flooding this week as a cold weather system takes aim at the state.
Light rain was falling in many regions Monday, the first day of spring, with precipitation expected to gain strength early Tuesday and linger into Wednesday.
Unlike recent warm atmospheric river storms that pulled moisture from the tropical Pacific, the incoming system will be a “cold, powerful, dynamic storm coming out of the northwest,” said David Sweet, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard. The greatest effects are expected in Southern California.
“The main event starts to approach tonight, and it really hits us hard tomorrow — that’s when we’re going to get the heaviest rain, the strongest winds and the heaviest snow in the mountains,” Sweet said. High temperatures will be 10 to 15 degrees below normal.
Lower mountain and foothill areas around Los Angeles could see up to 4 inches of rain, with up to 3 inches possible
