Deluge Begins in Southern California

A powerful winter storm swept through California on Wednesday, with heavy rain and gusty winds leading to evacuation warnings for mudslides in the south, bringing near white-out snow conditions in the mountains and hazardous travel for millions of holiday drivers. With forecasters warning of flash flooding and mudslides—and possibly the wettest Christmas in years—areas of Southern California scorched by January's wildfires were under evacuation warnings, the AP reports. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in Los Angeles County and other counties in the region, per the Los Angeles Times.

San Bernardino County firefighters said Wednesday they rescued people trapped in their cars when mud and debris rushed down a road leading into Wrightwood, a mountain resort town in the San Gabriel Mountains about 80 miles northeast of Los Angeles. It wasn't immediately clear how many people were rescued. Firefighters were going door to door to check on residents, and the area was under a shelter in place order, per the AP. Areas along the coast, including Malibu, were under flood warnings Wednesday, local officials said. Much of the Sacramento Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area were also under wind and flood advisories.

Several roadways across the regions were closed due to flooding. Conditions could worsen as multiple atmospheric rivers move through the state during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year. The storm in Los Angeles was expected to strengthen before tapering off late Wednesday evening. The storm has already caused damage in Northern California, where flash flooding led to water rescues and at least one death, authorities said.

Forecasters also warned that heavy snow and gusts were expected to create "near white-out conditions" in parts of the Sierra Nevada and make it "nearly impossible" to travel through the mountain passes. As of Wednesday morning, there was also a "considerable" avalanche risk around Lake Tahoe, according to the Sierra Avalanche Center. In Monterey along the central coast, wind gusts reportedly reached 60 mph.