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Strong winds and possible downed trees expected this weekend after record-breaking rainfall
Crews work on storm damage in Wrightwood on Christmas Day.
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Eric Thayer
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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
)
Topline:
Santa Ana winds are expected in Southern California this weekend, which forecasters say could topple trees in soil soaked by weeks of heavy rains that broke records in some areas.
What’s expected: Forecasters expect dry weather for the next couple of weeks, with moderate Santa Ana winds arriving this weekend. That carries a risk of downed trees, said Rich Thompson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s regional office for L.A., Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Louis Obispo counties. “The soil is still so saturated from all this rain that it'll be easier for trees to be blown down and things like that from the stronger wind,” he said. One positive from all the rain is that fire risk is now minimal in the near term, he said.
How heavy was the recent rainfall? The storms over the last several weeks have been “very impressive,” Thompson said. “ Some areas pretty much smashed their daily records in terms of rainfall.” Santa Barbara saw 4.5 inches of rain on Christmas Eve, setting a new daily rainfall record for Dec. 24. Downtown L.A. saw its fourth wettest time period since records began nearly 150 years ago, going back to 1877.
What were the rain’s effects? Authorities say two people died after being caught in flowing water from the storm — a mother of two whose body was pulled from the Santa Ana River in Orange County, and a man swept into a creek in Santa Barbara County. Dozens of homes in the mountain town of Wrightwood were heavily damaged by rivers of mud that flowed through, according to fire officials. The 101 Freeway was shut down just west of Santa Barbara for a full day this weekend due to debris flow and flooding from the rainfall. It has since reopened.
A couple weeks without rain expected: “Hopefully enjoy this next dry couple of weeks,” Thompson said. “Because we're still early into the season — we're not even halfway through the rainy season, so we’ve still got potential for more storms in the future. But right now just enjoy the next couple weeks, things should be dry.”
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