2 dead as storm hits California with rain, flooding, mudslides

California’s mega-atmospheric river continued its path of destruction Monday, with officials reporting the storm had taken a grim toll: At least two people have been killed by falling trees.

In addition to the deaths — both of which occurred Sunday in Northern California — a trail of damage, including flooding, mudslides and power outages, has spanned the state as the massive system continued to push through Southern California on Monday.

Dangerous winds kicked off the storm Saturday night across the Bay Area, Sacramento Valley and Central Coast, where gusts of more than 80 mph were recorded in some spots, causing fallen trees, power line damage and widespread outages. Brian Ferguson, spokesperson for the governor’s Office of Emergency Services, said one of the deaths occurred in Santa Cruz County and the other in Sutter County, north of Sacramento.

By late Sunday, the slow-moving atmospheric river parked itself over the Los Angeles metropolitan area, jump-starting what the National Weather Service called “one of the most dramatic weather days in recent memory.”

And by Monday morning, the storm was straddling Los Angeles and Orange counties, where an “extremely dangerous situation” was unfolding, including rushing rivers, downed trees, flooded streets and power outages, as well as landslides in Hollywood Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains. Multiple homes were damaged, and dozens have been forced to evacuate.

Much of the worst rain and winds have passed, weather officials said Monday, but the system is far from done.

“Things have held. We are in pretty good shape,” Ferguson said, even while noting “we are not out of the woods yet.”

The Los Angeles Fire Department had responded to 130 flooding incidents, 49 mud and debris flows, half a dozen structure fires and several water rescues for stranded motorists, Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said Monday.

“The hazards of this storm have not passed,” Crowley said.

In the San Fernando Valley, crews responded to a report of a 6-year-old boy who needed a rescue from a wash near Arleta, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. But after two hours of searching, officials called off the search of the flood control channel, which had 10 to 12 feet of water rushing at about 15 mph. Fire crews were never able to visually confirm a victim was in the water, the department said in a news release.

Agency spokesperson Nicholas Prange said there was little information about the 911 caller, and said it’s common for people to spot something in rushing water that might look like a person.

“We hope it was a false alarm,” Prange said. “But there’s always that possibility that the victim got caught underwater.”

The storm prompted a state of emergency declaration from Gov. Gavin Newsom along with evacuation orders and warnings for residents in and around wildfire burn scars in Sun Valley, Topanga, Juniper Hills and other local areas. On Monday morning, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed a declaration of a local emergency to help the city respond to the storm.

Bass told The Times that the city is particularly worried about mudslides and flooding in Studio City, Encino, Baldwin Hills, Baldwin Vista and La Tuna Canyon.

“Hopefully, this won’t get worse,” she said. “You know, the governor has declared a state of emergency in case we need additional resources, but there’s no evidence that we need that right now. But if we do, at least it will be there.”

Rainfall totals were continuing to pile up, including 10.28 inches in the Topanga area, 9.84 inches around Bel-Air and 5.3 inches in downtown Los Angeles — with much more on the way, according to Ryan Kittell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

“There’s still a lot of rain to come,” he said. “There’s a lot of rain left.”

The plume of moisture was expected to linger over the Greater Los Angeles metropolitan area through Monday night, followed by on-and-off rain Tuesday and possibly even some showers Wednesday, Kittell said.

“It’s definitely declining starting Wednesday,” he said, but “it’s not until after Friday that we get the all-clear.”

Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott’s Berry Farm and SeaWorld San Diego closed Monday because of the storm. Disneyland is expected to shut its doors 8 p.m. — earlier than normal — in anticipation of heavy rain through the night, according to a spokesperson for the park.

The storm was “remarkable and in some ways historic,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UCLA. He noted that the system reached bombogenesis — or “bomb cyclone” — status as it zeroed in on the state Sunday, indicating a sustained drop in pressure and a rapid strengthening.

“The concern right now in Southern California is that the rain and the atmospheric river has been stalled, mainly over the same place it has been for the past 18 hours,” Swain said during a briefing Monday.

It is likely that Los Angeles will come close to, or even exceed, an all-time 24-hour rainfall record when all is said and done, he said.

The atmospheric river already smashed several daily rainfall records Sunday. Downtown Los Angeles received 4.1 inches of rain — breaking the record of 2.55 inches set on Feb. 4, 1927. It was the area’s 10th wettest day since records began in 1877. Santa Barbara Airport broke a daily record with 2.39 inches of rain Sunday, as did Los Angeles International Airport with 1.76 inches and Long Beach Airport with 1.5 inches.

Statewide, about 300,000 people remained without power Monday, after a peak of 875,000 without electricity, Ferguson said.

Some 7,200 L.A. Department of Water and Power customers — of the utility’s 1.5 million total customers — are without power, DWP spokesman Joe Ramallo said Monday. West L.A., Mid-Wilshire and Tarzana are the neighborhoods most affected, he said. More than 5,000 Southern California Edison customers were also without power, mostly in L.A. and Orange counties, according to the utility.

Kittell said the heaviest rain bands had mostly passed, though there is still a 30% chance for thunderstorms, which can bring dangerous downpours.

An urgent flash flood warning remained in effect for areas around the Santa Monica Mountains and Hollywood Hills, while flood warnings and watches remained across the region.

Some of the worst weather Monday and Tuesday is expected in portions of Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, where the heaviest rain was still yet to come as the storm continued its crawl toward the state’s southern border, the National Weather Service said.

In Orange County, a stretch of Pacific Coast Highway adjacent to the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve from Seapoint Street to Warner Avenue remained closed Monday morning. The scenic stretch of Huntington Beach, which often floods during heavy rain, was inundated with water Sunday night, prompting crews to close both directions of the road. It was unclear when it would reopen.

The San Bernardino Mountains could see up to 8 inches of additional rainfall through Tuesday evening, while the mountains of San Diego and Riverside counties could see an additional 4 inches, the NWS said. Officials there issued evacuation warnings in the mountain communities of Forest Falls, Seven Oaks, Barton Flats and Angelus Oaks for possible mud and debris flows.

In Rialto, water had flooded a portion of Metrolink’s tracks, forcing delays on the San Bernardino Line, Laurene Lopez, Metrolink’s public affairs manager, said. All trains were generally running behind schedule, she said, but there had been no closures as of Monday afternoon.

Officials were closely monitoring burn scar areas near Yucaipa and Big Bear, according to Mara Rodriguez, a public information officer with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. She said a hiker in Mt. Baldy did not return home Sunday, and search-and-rescue personnel have been launched.

“Do not hike in these weather conditions!” the team warned followers on Instagram. Mt. Baldy Ski Lifts Inc. closed its facilities Monday because of “extreme weather” and announced on its Instagram page that crews will maintain the mountain “with what ever mother nature throws at it.” The resort anticipates operations will resume Wednesday.

In the Lake Arrowhead communities that got snowed in for weeks following a similar winter storm last year, a mix of rain and snow coated the area, though it was not enough to trigger evacuations or mandatory snow chains Monday morning, according to Ubaldo Gonzalez, public information officer for California Highway Patrol’s Arrowhead division. However, 18 inches of new snow was expected in the area in the next 48 hours.

“We’re keeping an eye on it,” Gonzalez said. “It’s raining pretty heavily up here, with a good little gust of wind. Rain is coming in densely, and fog is moving in pretty quickly.”

In Los Angeles, many residents awakened Monday to a soggy, muddy mess, including dozens of road closures and delays due to flooding and debris, according to the California Department of Transportation, California Highway Patrol and other agencies.

Multiple vehicles were submerged Monday on Piuma Road near Calabasas, and another vehicle was submerged on Balkins Drive in Agoura Hills, according to Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials. Minor debris flows had occurred in Agoura Hills, including one on Cornell Road and one on Eagletown Street. A 10-foot boulder was reported on northbound Malibu Canyon Road about 2 miles north of Pacific Coast Highway.

Some on-ramps and southbound lanes along the 5 Freeway were closed from Burbank to Los Feliz, as was a portion of State Route 23 near Banning Dam in Thousand Oaks, CalTrans said. State Route 33 was closed in both directions between Ojai and Lockwood Valley Road due to mudslides. A video of the area showed chunks of mud and rocks splayed across the road.

At least five homes were significantly damaged in a debris flow Monday morning in the 1900 block of North Beverly Drive in Beverly Crest, said Prange, the LAFD spokesperson. No one was trapped, he said, but about 10 people have been displaced.

Mud was also flowing across the Hollywood Hills, damaging homes and forcing residents to flee. At least two homes were damaged as debris flowed down Lockridge Road near Fryman Canyon in Studio City on Sunday night, and an additional nine homes were evacuated from the area out of concern about additional soil instability. Firefighters evacuated residents from three homes on Boris Drive in Tarzana due to flowing debris.

Topanga Canyon Road was closed for about a mile south of Woodland Hills due to flooding. Meanwhile, a portion of Beverly Glen Drive was blocked by debris, trash cans, mud and rocks — creating significant headaches for residents including Marvin Yasuda, who was rerouted from the area after dropping his kids off at school.

“I just have to go around,” he said in a hurry as he calculated a new route to his home. “It will probably take more than an hour. There is no other street.”

In Long Beach, 19 people were rescued Sunday from the rocks of the breakwater after the mast of a 40-foot boat they were on broke in high winds.

Officials urged Angelenos to stay home if possible. Those who must drive were advised to do so with caution, and to avoid deep water.

However, schools remained open in the Los Angeles area Monday, except for Vinedale Preparatory Academy in Sun Valley, which was affected by mandatory evacuation orders, and Topanga Elementary Charter School in Topanga. Both schools were affected by potentially dangerous hillside conditions. Students and staff at both schools were directed to other campuses for the day.

Santa Barbara County school districts opted to close Monday. Meanwhile, at least seven Cal State campuses — Long Beach, Dominguez Hills, Fullerton, Los Angeles, Northridge, Pomona and San Bernardino — alerted students and staff that classes would move online.

The storm also delivered powerful winds Sunday, including gusts up to 83 mph in the San Gabriel Mountains; 58 mph in Newhall Pass and 45 mph in the western San Fernando Valley.

By Monday, the strong gusts associated with the storm had abated into light southeasterly winds.

But slow, steady rain would continue to pour, Kittell said.

“It’s just a tremendous amount of rain in the last 24 hours,” he added.

Times staff reporters Ruben Vives, Hannah Fry, Dakota Smith and Rong- Gong Lin II contributed to this report.

California’s mega-atmospheric river continued its path of destruction Monday, with officials reporting the storm had taken a grim toll: At least two people have been killed by falling trees.

In addition to the deaths — both of which occurred Sunday in Northern California — a trail of damage, including flooding, mudslides and power outages, has spanned the state as the massive system continued to push through Southern California on Monday.

Dangerous winds kicked off the storm Saturday night across the Bay Area, Sacramento Valley and Central Coast, where gusts of more than 80 mph were recorded in some spots, causing fallen trees, power line damage and widespread outages. Brian Ferguson, spokesperson for the governor’s Office of Emergency Services, said one of the deaths occurred in Santa Cruz County and the other in Sutter County, north of Sacramento.

By late Sunday, the slow-moving atmospheric river parked itself over the Los Angeles metropolitan area, jump-starting what the National Weather Service called “one of the most dramatic weather days in recent memory.”

And by Monday morning, the storm was straddling Los Angeles and Orange counties, where an “extremely dangerous situation” was unfolding, including rushing rivers, downed trees, flooded streets and power outages, as well as landslides in Hollywood Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains. Multiple homes were damaged, and dozens have been forced to evacuate.

Much of the worst rain and winds have passed, weather officials said Monday, but the system is far from done.

“Things have held. We are in pretty good shape,” Ferguson said, even while noting “we are not out of the woods yet.”

The Los Angeles Fire Department had responded to 130 flooding incidents, 49 mud and debris flows, half a dozen structure fires and several water rescues for stranded motorists, Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said Monday.

“The hazards of this storm have not passed,” Crowley said.

In the San Fernando Valley, crews responded to a report of a 6-year-old boy who needed a rescue from a wash near Arleta, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. But after two hours of searching, officials called off the search of the flood control channel, which had 10 to 12 feet of water rushing at about 15 mph. Fire crews were never able to visually confirm a victim was in the water, the department said in a news release.

Agency spokesperson Nicholas Prange said there was little information about the 911 caller, and said it’s common for people to spot something in rushing water that might look like a person.

“We hope it was a false alarm,” Prange said. “But there’s always that possibility that the victim got caught underwater.”

The storm prompted a state of emergency declaration from Gov. Gavin Newsom along with evacuation orders and warnings for residents in and around wildfire burn scars in Sun Valley, Topanga, Juniper Hills and other local areas. On Monday morning, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed a declaration of a local emergency to help the city respond to the storm.

Bass told The Times that the city is particularly worried about mudslides and flooding in Studio City, Encino, Baldwin Hills, Baldwin Vista and La Tuna Canyon.

“Hopefully, this won’t get worse,” she said. “You know, the governor has declared a state of emergency in case we need additional resources, but there’s no evidence that we need that right now. But if we do, at least it will be there.”

Rainfall totals were continuing to pile up, including 10.28 inches in the Topanga area, 9.84 inches around Bel-Air and 5.3 inches in downtown Los Angeles — with much more on the way, according to Ryan Kittell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

“There’s still a lot of rain to come,” he said. “There’s a lot of rain left.”

The plume of moisture was expected to linger over the Greater Los Angeles metropolitan area through Monday night, followed by on-and-off rain Tuesday and possibly even some showers Wednesday, Kittell said.

“It’s definitely declining starting Wednesday,” he said, but “it’s not until after Friday that we get the all-clear.”

Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott’s Berry Farm and SeaWorld San Diego closed Monday because of the storm. Disneyland is expected to shut its doors 8 p.m. — earlier than normal — in anticipation of heavy rain through the night, according to a spokesperson for the park.

The storm was “remarkable and in some ways historic,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UCLA. He noted that the system reached bombogenesis — or “bomb cyclone” — status as it zeroed in on the state Sunday, indicating a sustained drop in pressure and a rapid strengthening.

“The concern right now in Southern California is that the rain and the atmospheric river has been stalled, mainly over the same place it has been for the past 18 hours,” Swain said during a briefing Monday.

It is likely that Los Angeles will come close to, or even exceed, an all-time 24-hour rainfall record when all is said and done, he said.

The atmospheric river already smashed several daily rainfall records Sunday. Downtown Los Angeles received 4.1 inches of rain — breaking the record of 2.55 inches set on Feb. 4, 1927. It was the area’s 10th wettest day since records began in 1877. Santa Barbara Airport broke a daily record with 2.39 inches of rain Sunday, as did Los Angeles International Airport with 1.76 inches and Long Beach Airport with 1.5 inches.

Statewide, about 300,000 people remained without power Monday, after a peak of 875,000 without electricity, Ferguson said.

Some 7,200 L.A. Department of Water and Power customers — of the utility’s 1.5 million total customers — are without power, DWP spokesman Joe Ramallo said Monday. West L.A., Mid-Wilshire and Tarzana are the neighborhoods most affected, he said. More than 5,000 Southern California Edison customers were also without power, mostly in L.A. and Orange counties, according to the utility.

Kittell said the heaviest rain bands had mostly passed, though there is still a 30% chance for thunderstorms, which can bring dangerous downpours.

An urgent flash flood warning remained in effect for areas around the Santa Monica Mountains and Hollywood Hills, while flood warnings and watches remained across the region.

Some of the worst weather Monday and Tuesday is expected in portions of Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, where the heaviest rain was still yet to come as the storm continued its crawl toward the state’s southern border, the National Weather Service said.

In Orange County, a stretch of Pacific Coast Highway adjacent to the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve from Seapoint Street to Warner Avenue remained closed Monday morning. The scenic stretch of Huntington Beach, which often floods during heavy rain, was inundated with water Sunday night, prompting crews to close both directions of the road. It was unclear when it would reopen.

The San Bernardino Mountains could see up to 8 inches of additional rainfall through Tuesday evening, while the mountains of San Diego and Riverside counties could see an additional 4 inches, the NWS said. Officials there issued evacuation warnings in the mountain communities of Forest Falls, Seven Oaks, Barton Flats and Angelus Oaks for possible mud and debris flows.

In Rialto, water had flooded a portion of Metrolink’s tracks, forcing delays on the San Bernardino Line, Laurene Lopez, Metrolink’s public affairs manager, said. All trains were generally running behind schedule, she said, but there had been no closures as of Monday afternoon.

Officials were closely monitoring burn scar areas near Yucaipa and Big Bear, according to Mara Rodriguez, a public information officer with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. She said a hiker in Mt. Baldy did not return home Sunday, and search-and-rescue personnel have been launched.

“Do not hike in these weather conditions!” the team warned followers on Instagram. Mt. Baldy Ski Lifts Inc. closed its facilities Monday because of “extreme weather” and announced on its Instagram page that crews will maintain the mountain “with what ever mother nature throws at it.” The resort anticipates operations will resume Wednesday.

In the Lake Arrowhead communities that got snowed in for weeks following a similar winter storm last year, a mix of rain and snow coated the area, though it was not enough to trigger evacuations or mandatory snow chains Monday morning, according to Ubaldo Gonzalez, public information officer for California Highway Patrol’s Arrowhead division. However, 18 inches of new snow was expected in the area in the next 48 hours.

“We’re keeping an eye on it,” Gonzalez said. “It’s raining pretty heavily up here, with a good little gust of wind. Rain is coming in densely, and fog is moving in pretty quickly.”

In Los Angeles, many residents awakened Monday to a soggy, muddy mess, including dozens of road closures and delays due to flooding and debris, according to the California Department of Transportation, California Highway Patrol and other agencies.

Multiple vehicles were submerged Monday on Piuma Road near Calabasas, and another vehicle was submerged on Balkins Drive in Agoura Hills, according to Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials. Minor debris flows had occurred in Agoura Hills, including one on Cornell Road and one on Eagletown Street. A 10-foot boulder was reported on northbound Malibu Canyon Road about 2 miles north of Pacific Coast Highway.

Some on-ramps and southbound lanes along the 5 Freeway were closed from Burbank to Los Feliz, as was a portion of State Route 23 near Banning Dam in Thousand Oaks, CalTrans said. State Route 33 was closed in both directions between Ojai and Lockwood Valley Road due to mudslides. A video of the area showed chunks of mud and rocks splayed across the road.

At least five homes were significantly damaged in a debris flow Monday morning in the 1900 block of North Beverly Drive in Beverly Crest, said Prange, the LAFD spokesperson. No one was trapped, he said, but about 10 people have been displaced.

Mud was also flowing across the Hollywood Hills, damaging homes and forcing residents to flee. At least two homes were damaged as debris flowed down Lockridge Road near Fryman Canyon in Studio City on Sunday night, and an additional nine homes were evacuated from the area out of concern about additional soil instability. Firefighters evacuated residents from three homes on Boris Drive in Tarzana due to flowing debris.

Topanga Canyon Road was closed for about a mile south of Woodland Hills due to flooding. Meanwhile, a portion of Beverly Glen Drive was blocked by debris, trash cans, mud and rocks — creating significant headaches for residents including Marvin Yasuda, who was rerouted from the area after dropping his kids off at school.

“I just have to go around,” he said in a hurry as he calculated a new route to his home. “It will probably take more than an hour. There is no other street.”

In Long Beach, 19 people were rescued Sunday from the rocks of the breakwater after the mast of a 40-foot boat they were on broke in high winds.

Officials urged Angelenos to stay home if possible. Those who must drive were advised to do so with caution, and to avoid deep water.

However, schools remained open in the Los Angeles area Monday, except for Vinedale Preparatory Academy in Sun Valley, which was affected by mandatory evacuation orders, and Topanga Elementary Charter School in Topanga. Both schools were affected by potentially dangerous hillside conditions. Students and staff at both schools were directed to other campuses for the day.

Santa Barbara County school districts opted to close Monday. Meanwhile, at least seven Cal State campuses — Long Beach, Dominguez Hills, Fullerton, Los Angeles, Northridge, Pomona and San Bernardino — alerted students and staff that classes would move online.

The storm also delivered powerful winds Sunday, including gusts up to 83 mph in the San Gabriel Mountains; 58 mph in Newhall Pass and 45 mph in the western San Fernando Valley.

By Monday, the strong gusts associated with the storm had abated into light southeasterly winds.

But slow, steady rain would continue to pour, Kittell said.

“It’s just a tremendous amount of rain in the last 24 hours,” he added.

Times staff reporters Ruben Vives, Hannah Fry, Dakota Smith and Rong- Gong Lin II contributed to this report.