SOLVANG, CA – JANUARY 9: Record rains, brought on by a series of atmospheric river storms hit the Central Coast and Santa Barbara County, causing damage and flooding at the popular western-style Alisal Ranch & Resort, a favorite hideaway of Hollywood celebrities, as viewed on January 9, 2023, in Solvang, California. Nearly 12 inches of rain fell overnight in the mountains above, flooding the main entrance and damaging several cottages at this resort near the Santa Ynez River along the Alisal Creek. All employees and guests were evacuated and roads in and out of the resort are now closed. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)
What to Know
Five to 10 inches of rain fell Monday across Southern California.
A flood watch will be in effect from late Monday through Tuesday evening for most of Los Angeles County.
Debris flows are possible in communities below recent Southern California burn scars.
An unrelenting storm brought more wet weather to Southern California Tuesday a day after pounding the region with 5 to 10 inches of rain that forced evacuations, triggered mudslides and closed a major freeway in Ventura County.
Evacuation orders and warnings were issued Monday in Santa Barbara County as the storm moved down the coast. The storm, fueled by a long plume of moisture over the Pacific Ocean, hammered the area with downpours into the evening and overnight.
In Chatsworth, a sinkhole opened and swallowed a car. Two people were rescued from inside the portion of collapsed road.
Mud also covered a section of the 101 Freeway, which was closed in Ventura County northwest of Los Angeles. The storm washed 3 feet of mud and rocks onto State Highway 126, where crews worked into the night to help people stranded in cars.
A line of heavy rain will move into the Los Angeles area later Tuesday morning before the storm moves east. That band of rain was in the Central Valley early Tuesday and could bring thunderstorms.
Rain tapers off Tuesday afternoon.
"We have more rain. We have the possibility of thunderstorms," said NBC4 forecaster Belen De Leon. "At least through the early afternoon, make sure you have those umbrellas handy.
"Things are going to get wetter before they get drier."
Strong wind gusts of up to 70 mph were in the forecast for Los Angeles County mountains. The Antelope Valley was expected to see gusts up to 60 mph Monday.
High surf was expected through Tuesday, with large waves on west-facing beaches.
The snow level could drop to 6,000 feet Tuesday.
Temperatures will stay cool with highs in the lower 60s. Overnight lows will mostly be in the 40s and lower 50s, but will drop into the 30s in the mountains and high desert.
Partly sunny skies will return Wednesday and Thursday, but more rain is possible next weekend, possibly as early as Friday night.
In Santa Barbara County, an evacuation order was issued for the Thomas Fire burn area due to the possibility of flooding and debris flows.
More than 5 inches of rain were reported in the Montecito area, site of a deadly 2018 debris flow. The evacuation order was extended to all of Montecito, Toro Canyon, Sycamore Canyon, and Padaro Lane.
The northbound 101 Freeway was closed at Mariposa Reina due to debris flow in the area. State Route 154 was closed in both directions at State Route 246 and State Route 192 due to rock slides.
It was also closed at Highway 33 through Santa Claus Lane. Officials said to expect flooding along sections of the northbound 101 Freeway throughout Summerland and Montecito. The northbound 101 was also closed at Gaviota Highway.
San Ysidro Creek was seen flooding on Jameson Lane around 3:30 p.m.
Flooding closes the 101 Freeway in Ventura County. Michelle Valles reports for Today in LA on Tuesday Jan. 10, 2023.
UC Santa Barbara also canceled classes Monday afternoon due to the storm.
Flooding was reported in Fillmore, Ojai, Santa Clarita, Santa Paula, Lockwood Valley, Lake Hughes, and Elizabeth Lake.
Authorities were also keeping an eye on burn scars that may become affected, like Lake, Route, Emigrant, Hungry, Tumbleweed, and North.
Parade of Atmospheric Rivers
Atmospheric rivers, long plumes of moisture stretching out into the Pacific capable of dropping significant amounts of rain and snow, are fueling recent deadly storms that caused flooding in Northern California. The rivers in the sky are behind some of the state's most devastating storms.
The wet weather comes after days of rain from Pacific storms that last week knocked out power to thousands, flooded streets and slammed the coastline. The first of the heavier storms this week prompted the weather service to issue a flood watch for a large swath of Northern and Central California with 6 to 12 inches of rain expected through Wednesday in the already saturated Sacramento-area foothills.
A surfer gets a tube ride while riding a big wave generated by recent storms at the Seal Beach pier Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
A boogie boarder heading out to ride big waves walks past rash and debris covering a portion of the beach after recent storms brought debris-flows and flooding across parts of Seal Beach near the San Gabriel River Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023 in Seal Beach, CA. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Damaged cars sit beneath a fallen tree at the El Camino Shopping Center on Mulholland Drive in Woodland Hills on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023. The tree fell Saturday night trapping some people inside the cars. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Damaged cars sit beneath a fallen tree at the El Camino Shopping Center on Mulholland Drive in Woodland Hills on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023. The tree fell Saturday night trapping some people inside the cars. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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In an aerial view, workers inspect a railway bridge over Hopper Creek that is covered in storm debris on January 11, 2023 near Fillmore, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
A resident keeps watch on Fredonia Drive in Studio City where a mudslide is blocking the road during the storm on Tuesday, January 10, 2023. Credit: Getty
Flooding at the western-style Alisal Ranch & Resort as seen on January 9, 2023, in Solvang, California. Credit: Getty
NBCLA
A downed tree pictured during a Jan. 10, 2023 SoCal storm.
A mudslide flooded parts of Fredonia Drive in Studio City during a storm on Tuesday, January 10, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Flooding at the popular western-style Alisal Ranch & Resort, a favorite hideaway of Hollywood celebrities, as viewed on January 9, 2023, in Solvang, California. Credit: Getty
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A resident attempts to help a vehicle stuck on Fredonia Drive in Studio City where a mudslide is blocking the road during the storm on Tuesday, January 10, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
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Two vehicles fell into a sinkhole Monday Jan. 9, 2023 in Chatsworth.
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A storm leaves cars partially submerged in Studio City Tuesday Jan. 10, 2023.
MONTECITO, CA-JANUARY 9, 2023:Jameson Lane in Montecito is flooded out, a result of San Ysidro creek overflowing due to heavy rainfall in the area. At left is the 101 freeway that was closed to all vehicles heading north. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
MONTECITO, CA-JANUARY 9, 2023: Lifelong Montecito resident George Quirin, 63, photographs a flooded Jameson Lane in Monticito, a result of San Ysidro creek overflowing due to heay rainfall in the area. At left is the 101 freeway that was closed to all vehicles heading north. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 09: Rain falls as the Los Angeles River flows at a strong rate on January 09, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. California continues to get drenched by powerful atmospheric river events that have brought high winds and flooding rains which have toppled trees, flooded roads and cut power to tens of thousands of residents. Storms are lined up over the Pacific Ocean and are expected to bring more rain and wind through the end of the week. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
REDONDO BEACH-CA-JANUARY 9, 2023: Surfers walk The Esplanade after riding the waves in Redondo Beach on Monday, January 9, 2023. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Beverly Hills, CA – January 09: Amidst rain showers, crew members take photos as they are reflected in pools of water while setting up the red carpet for the 80th Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills Monday, Jan. 9, 2023. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA-JANUARY 9, 2023: Brayan Suarez leaps to avoid getting wet while crossing to the other side as the rain water builds up on the ground at Santee Alley in Los Angeles. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Jason Darby, a supervisor with the Los Angeles Dept. of Water and Power, gets a closer look at a landslide on Mullholland Drive near Summit Circle in Beverly Hills, caused by the recent rains. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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A person walks in the rain on a bridge crossing the Los Angeles River on January 09, 2023 in Los Angeles, CaliforniaGetty.
Atwater, CA – January 05: A man takes a closer look at rain-swollen LA River raging under Glendale Blvd. on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023 in Atwater, CA. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Redondo Beach, CA – January 05: A young man runs from the spray of waves hitting and going over the breakwall of Redondo Beach, CA, Harbor, in the wake of a storm that cleared the south bay community of Los Angeles County, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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A rainbow appears over a freeway in Canyon County on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023.
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People brave the elements along the Hermosa Beach Pier in Hermosa Beach, CA, as rain fell across Los Angeles County, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Seal Beach, CA – January 03: Beachgoers watch surfers south of the Seal Beach Pier during the rain in Seal Beach, CA, on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
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Seal Beach, CA – January 03: A visitors to Eisenhower Park hangs out near the Seal Beach, CA, on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
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Dave Smith, a professional dog walker, takes his seven dogs out for their late-morning stroll along the Esplanade in Redondo Beach, CA, as rain fell across Los Angeles County, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Mannequins are covered in plastic along W 8th St. in central Los Angeles as a light mist of rain falls on Jan. 3, 2023. Rain is expected for the the first week of January, with light mist filing in Los Angeles on Jan. 3, 2022. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Juan Marcos shared this image in which a flood is seen in Sherman Oaks, California.
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Suzanne Detwiler shared a picture from Lake Arrowhead: “About 2 inches of snow at 5500 feet”, she wrote.
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LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – JAN. 4, 2023. Rain clouds shroud the skyline of downtown Los Angeles on a rainy Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 4, 2023. Another storm is expected to bring heavier rain overnight. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Duarte, CA – January 04: Another storm is moving into Southern California, bringing heavy rain to the area today and Thursday. Heeding forecasters warning of K-rails are placed to protect homes from possible flooding and mudflows from mountain along 200 block of Melcanyon Road on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023 in Duarte, CA. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Los Angeles, CA – January 04: Vehicles make their way through the rain filled intersection of Glenoaks Boulevard and Tuxford Street in Sun Valley Wed, Jan 4, 2023. (Photo by Hans Gutknecht/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – JAN. 4, 2023. Rain slicks Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles on a wet Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 4, 2023. Another storm is expected to bring heavier rain overnight. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – JAN. 4, 2023. The Arzate family, visiting from Phoenix, wait to cross Hill Street in downtown Los Angeles on a rainy Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 4, 2023. Another storm is expected to bring heavier rain overnight. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – JAN. 4, 2023. Rabbi Yuval Noff walks in the rain on Hill Street on a wet Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 4, 2023, in Los Angeles. Another storm is expected to bring heavier rain through the night](Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Los Angeles, CaliforniaJan. 4, 2023Mathew Prado, who works at the Sheraton Hotel at Universal Studio, sweeps water from the front drive. Heavy rain is falling in Los Angeles as another winter storm moves in. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – JAN. 4, 2023. Rush hour traffic stacks up on the Harbor Freeway in downtown Los Angeles on a rainy Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 4, 2023. Another storm is expected to bring heavier rain overnight. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Southern California residents enjoy a late day hike on the snow-covered Big Falls Trailhead as dark storm clouds move in ahead of a major storm beginning Wednesday evening into Thursday on January 4, 2022 in Forest Falls California.(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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A rockslide closed part of Route 23 in Malibu Jan. 5, 2023.
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Encino, CA – January 05: Migrating white pelicans huddle by rain-swollen Los Angeles River in Sepulveda Basin on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023 in Encino, CA. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Encino, CA – January 05: Migrating white pelicans huddle by rain-swollen Los Angeles River in Sepulveda Basin on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023 in Encino, CA. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
NOVATO, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 4, 2023: Warning messages for drivers are posted along US Highway 101 in Marin County before a powerful storm arrives to the area in Novato, California on Wednesday January 4, 2023.(Melina Mara/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The beach during a rain storm in Hermosa Beach, California, US, on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. A powerful storm with hurricane-force gusts has begun to wind down after ripping across California, leaving behind power outages, flood threats and road closures just hours before another drenching is set to wash over the state. Photographer: Eric Thayer/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Traffic on a freeway during a rain storm in Los Angeles, California, US, on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. A powerful storm with hurricane-force gusts has begun to wind down after ripping across California, leaving behind power outages, flood threats and road closures just hours before another drenching is set to wash over the state. Photographer: Eric Thayer/Bloomberg via Getty Images
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 05: Motorists on the State Route 2 (SR 2) freeway are warned of severe weather and to avoid travel as a powerful storm slams into the West Coast on January 5, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. California is being inundated by a “Pineapple Express” storm, or atmospheric river, and a bomb cyclone, a rapidly rotating storm system, bringing heavy rain and wind, and the threat of widespread flooding and possible landslides near wildfire burn areas. Coastal areas may sustain damage and heavy snow is accumulating the mountains. The dangerous storm condition has prompted California Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 05: A motorist drives a flooded roadway as a powerful storm slams into the West Coast on January 5, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. California is being inundated by a “Pineapple Express” storm, or atmospheric river, and a bomb cyclone, a rapidly rotating storm system, bringing heavy rain and wind, and the threat of widespread flooding and possible landslides near wildfire burn areas. Coastal areas may sustain damage and heavy snow is accumulating the mountains. The dangerous storm condition has prompted California Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
Gov. Gavin Newsom said 12 people has been killed during the storms in the past 10 days. Hee warned that this week's storms could be even more dangerous and urged people to stay home.
"Just be cautious over the course of the next week, particularly the next day or two or so," Newsom said during a briefing with California officials outlining the state's storm preparations.
Evacuation warnings were in place for about 13,000 residents of a flood-prone area of Sonoma County north of San Francisco. The Russian River was expected to overspill its banks in the coming days.
Sacramento County ordered evacuations for people living around Wilton, a town of about 6,000 roughly 20 miles southeast of downtown Sacramento. The rural area along the Cosumnes River saw flooding in an earlier storm.
The state Department of Transportation warned drivers to stay off mountain roads. A stretch of U.S. 395 in Mono County, along the Eastern Sierra, was closed due to heavy snow, ice and whiteout conditions.
Observed Precipitation Totals
Jan. 1-9, 2023
Click or tap on each circle for details
Source: NOAA
California Drought
California's drought conditions improved after early winter storms brought widespread rain and much-needed snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Nearly 98 percent of the state remains in at least one of the four drought categories in the weekly U.S. Drought Monitor report released Thursday morning, but no part of California is in the most severe category. Last week, more than 7 percent of the state was in exceptional drought.
The most recent report includes data available through Dec. 2, meaning results from last week's powerful storm is not included. The storm arrived Wednesday and intensified overnight into Thursday.
California has spent most of the last 15 years in drought conditions. The current three-year dry spell included one of the driest late winters on record.
The state's normal wet season runs from late fall to the end of winter, but dismal precipitation left about 95 percent of California in severe drought at the start of spring. By September, nearly all of California was in drought.
Much of California’s water comes from melting snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. In an ideal scenario, storms blanket the mountains with snow during winter, building up the natural reservoir. That snow then melts in late spring and early summer, replenishing the state's water system
The snowpack covering California's mountains is off to one of its best starts in 40 years, raising hopes that the drought-stricken state could soon see relief in the spring when the snow melts and begins to refill parched reservoirs.
Statewide, snowpack is at 174% of the historical average for this year, the third-best measurement in the past 40 years. Even more snow is expected later this week and over the weekend, giving officials hope for a wet winter the state so desperately needs.
