Overview
- Flood watches cover roughly 20 million people across Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties through 10 p.m. Saturday.
- Flash flood warnings were issued early Saturday for parts of Ventura County, and targeted evacuation orders are in place for specified high‑risk homes near the Palisades, Eaton and other recent burn scars.
- Forecasters expect 2–5 inches of rain in coastal and urban areas and 3–6 inches in the mountains, with hourly rates near 1 inch possible over scars such as Eaton, Palisades and Bridge.
- A cut‑off low is driving a long window of heavy rain through Saturday afternoon, increasing debris‑flow and landslide potential, with uncertainty over where the most intense band will stall.
- Emergency operations are activated, LAFD and swift‑water teams are pre‑deployed, Topanga Canyon Boulevard is closed near the Palisades burn area, and forecasters note a small risk of severe thunderstorms and brief tornadoes.