After celebrating a warm and sunny holiday weekend — a jarring juxtaposition with the dangerous snowstorms on the East Coast — Southern California is bracing for heavy rain and a steep drop in temperatures.
The National Weather Service predicts rainfall paired with gusty winds starting Tuesday and lasting through Wednesday, with up to 1.5 inches across the Los Angeles area.
Parts of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties are expected to get the brunt of the storm and could see up to 3 inches of rainfall.
Los Angeles residents should expect "drastic changes" on Tuesday, according to the latest National Weather Service report, with temperatures projected to plummet at least 20 degrees, dropping into the low 60s.
"This is a good, healthy storm that's going to produce mostly beneficial rain, which means it shouldn't cause a whole lot of impacts as far as flooding," meteorologist Ryan Kittell said Monday. "Though certainly road conditions will not be great for traveling."
Light rain is also expected on Thursday and Friday. Additional heavy rainfall could come on New Year's Eve.
The forecast is a stark change of pace after Los Angeles residents flocked to beaches on Christmas Day to enjoy 80 degree temperatures while the rest of the country seemed to be at the mercy of the "bomb cyclone."
____
