Evacuations, highway closures as storms slam S. California
theweathernetwork.com
Tuesday, January 15, 2019, 2:13 PM - In the wake of last year's horrendous wildfire season, many in Southern California have awaited the arrival of the winter rains with trepidation. The fear of mudslides -- all too common in the aftermath of wildfires -- have already prompted officials to issue evacuation orders for some Los Angeles area residents, with several storms set to stream into the coast this week. Already, a mudslide closed all lanes of the Pacific Coast Highway near Malibu on Monday as the first storm moved into the region.
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Heavy rain caused localized flooding, as nearly an inch of rain (25.4 mm) fell at LAX on Monday, with up to 8 inches (200+ mm) expected for parts of the region through Thursday. Flash flood watches are in place from San Diego to Santa Barbara. The average total January rainfall for LAX is just under 3 inches.
Mandatory evacuation orders extended into Santa Barbara County on Tuesday, in anticipation of the next round of heavy rain, forecast to move in Tuesday afternoon and evening.
At the same time, in the mountains surrounding the L.A. Basin very heavy snow caused the closure of Interstate 5, a major artery running north of Los Angeles. Popular alternate routes were also closed due to heavy snow and strong winds.
Some motorists reported being trapped for hours on the closed highway, with nowhere to go as they waited for snow and 'multiple overturned big rigs' to be cleared. The California Highway Patrol finally started to release trapped cars by Monday evening. The highway was reopened for Tuesday.
The second system is expected to move into the area Tuesday night, with a third -- the strongest and wettest of the three -- forecast to hit the region Wednesday and Thursday.
