Southern California saw its first significant rainfall in weeks on January 26, 2025, bringing much-needed relief from wildfires but also triggering flash floods and debris flows across Los Angeles County.
The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a Freeze Warning and a Frost Advisory for parts of the San Francisco Bay Area as winter storm brings freezing temperatures to the region.
A winter storm blanketed southern California in snow and rain, disrupting mountain travel with forecasts of up to 36 cm (14 inches) of snow, slick roads, and wind gusts of up to 80 km/h (50 mph) in affected areas.
Southern California is bracing for a weekend storm that could cause flash flooding and landslides in areas scarred by January’s wildfires, with rain and snow expected to bring relief but also new risks.
Much-needed rains are forecast for Southern California this weekend as a low-pressure system impacts the state heavily affected by devastating wildfires.
Multiple wildfires fueled by Santa Ana winds erupted across northern San Diego County on January 20 and 21, 2025, forcing evacuations, damaging structures, and burning more than 74 ha (182 acres).
Southern California’s wildfire risk is reaching critical levels on Monday, January 20, 2025, with forecasters cautioning that dry vegetation and powerful winds could create the perfect conditions for fast-spreading, unpredictable fires. Potential impacts from this event include downed trees and power outages, very rapid and erratic fire spread, dangerous driving conditions and travel delays, especially for high-profile vehicles, and hazardous sea conditions with potential breaking waves for Avalon Harbor. If you live in affected region and haven’t prepared already, now is the time to act.
Extremely critical fire weather conditions persist in southern California due to strong Santa Ana winds, posing a significant threat of rapid fire growth through Wednesday. Red Flag Warnings remain in effect for Ventura and Los Angeles counties, with localized gusts reaching 115 km/h (70 mph).
Two massive wildfires in Los Angeles County have scorched more than 14 973 ha (37 000 acres), leaving at least 24 people dead, destroying over 12 000 structures, and threatening tens of thousands more, as of late Sunday, January 12, 2025.
The Palisades Fire, now the largest of six active wildfires in Los Angeles County, has scorched over 15 400 ha (38 000 acres), destroyed 5 300 structures, and forced new evacuations as containment remains at 11%. To improve public awareness and operational transparency, CAL FIRE LNU has introduced real-time 3D aircraft tracking on its incident map.
