Overview
- The National Weather Service issued early Friday flash flood warnings for parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including Malibu and Ojai, with rain rates near 1 inch per hour and reports of rockslides and mudslides.
- Wrightwood saw streets buried in thick mud that trapped residents and cars, prompting an evacuation warning, door-to-door checks by first responders, and staging of more than 150 firefighters, with a shelter open at the Victorville Fairgrounds.
- Authorities and local reports confirm at least three storm-related deaths this week, including Sacramento County Sheriff’s Deputy James Caravallo in a crash and fatalities reported in San Diego and Redding.
- Los Angeles remains under local emergency declarations after more than 350 traffic crashes, over 600 tree emergencies and thousands of power outages, with a mandatory evacuation for the Riverwood area during a controlled Tujunga Dam release and warnings in multiple burn scars.
- Downtown Los Angeles recorded its wettest Christmas period in 54 years as a final band delivers additional rain Friday, with forecasters warning of coastal high surf and Sierra avalanche danger before a drier weekend.