A storm system dropped consistent widespread rainfall across Southern California Tuesday morning, March 21, but there may be a slight reprieve before another round of rain falls in the late afternoon or early evening, forecasters said.
Most areas in Los Angeles and Orange counties and the Inland Empire had received roughly an inch of rain through 10 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.
In the mountains, Mt. Baldy had received 7 inches of snow, while Mt. Wilson got around 4 and a half inches, Meteorologist Mike Wofford said.
In the San Bernardino Mountains, 3 to 6 of snow had accumulated, Meteorologist Casey Oswant said.
However, the storm has not led to any calls for service for folks in the Lake Arrowhead area that was buried by snow in late February and early March, San Bernardino County Fire Department spokesman Eric Sherwin said.
“We’re staffed and ready,” Sherwin said. “We do have extra resources pre-positioned in addition to our normal staffing” including swift water crews and hand crews.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, known locally as the Yucaipa Police Department, announced Monday evening that the communities of Oak Glen, Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village, Angelus Oaks, and Northeast Yucaipa were under an evacuation warning because of potential mudflows. The communities are in the El Dorado and Apple fire burn scar areas.
RELATED: Evacuation warnings in place for burn scar areas in Yucaipa
“The bigger concern for this storm is the wind,” Sherwin said. “Because the hillsides are saturated, the trees aren’t as stable as normal and if they’re subjected to wind gusts, there’s the potential for a tree to come down and block a roadway or threaten a structure.”
Wind gusts had been recorded in Orange County between 20 and 45 mph with the potential for more, Oswant said. The Inland Empire was not quite as intense, with wind gusts between 25 and 35 mph
Wofford said Los Angeles County could see a break in…
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