Much-needed rain in California bringing risk of flash flooding, debris flows in burn scar areas
The first significant rainfall in several months will spread across Southern California on Sunday, giving a badly needed sip of water to an area parched by drought and devastated by multiple raging wildfires.
The National Weather Service said there is a 15-25% chance of thunderstorms across the region, which could bring periods of heavy rainfall that could overwhelm the burn-scar areas. There is also a threat of some small hail and locally high wind gusts. “There’s very little risk from this event if you’re not in or near a wildfire burn area, so this will be a net beneficial rain for 95% of people,” UCLA and UC ANR climate scientist Daniel Swain . “But it could be quite dangerous for the 5% of people who live in or near those fire zones susceptible to debris flows … If you are evacuated, there may be new evacuation orders or warnings for debris flow risk this weekend.
Downtown Los Angeles hasn’t fared much better, netting just five days with measurable rain totaling 0.16 inches since May 5.LAX Airport has only seen three days with measurable rain since May 5, and downtown Los Angeles experienced five days with measurable rain since that day.About a half-inch to an inch of rain is expected around the Los Angeles area by the end of Monday, with 1-2 inches of rain in the mountains, though the higher elevations will pick up some snow.
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