An unseasonably cold storm expected to generate furious winds headed toward the Southland Wednesday, where rain is expected starting Thursday afternoon, possibly lasting until Friday night, forecasters said.
The storm, which originated in the Gulf of Alaska, may trigger rainfall in Northern California as early as tonight, National Weather Service forecasters said.
It is expected to produce between a quarter-inch and an inch of rain, with the higher amounts likely in Los Angeles County, according to an NWS statement. But in the San Gabriel Mountains and in any area hit by a thunderstorm, up to an inch-and-a-half of rain is possible, it said.
The chance of thunderstorms is slight, the statement said, but any that materializes will have the potential to produce a half-inch of rain per hour, it said.
"If a thunderstorm happened to develop over a recent burn area, there would be the potential for some minor mud and debris flows," the statement said.
The snow level generally will range between 5,000 and 6,000 feet, and between four and eight inches of snow is expected in the San Gabriels, about twice as much as in Ventura County, L.A. County's neighbor, forecasters said.
Also expected as an outcome of the storm are gusty southwest winds that could gust at 50 miles per hour in the San Gabriels and the Antelope Valley, they said.
Today's high temperatures in the Southland are expected to be in the high 60s and low 70s under cloudy skies. Thursday's will be a few degrees lower in many communities.
