Southern California rain helps firefighters but creates risk of flooding and toxic ash runoff

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rain fell on parts of Southern California on Sunday and the scattered showers were expected to continue overnight, boosting the risk of toxic ash runoff in areas scorched by Los Angeles-area wildfires.

Flood watches were in effect through 4 p.m. Monday for burn areas from recent fires that broke out around the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles, Altadena and Castaic Lake, said Joe Sirard, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

“All these fresh burns are very susceptible to rapid runoff,” Sirard said, warning of even small amounts of rain in a few minutes’ time. “What that means is we have a fairly high danger of mud and debris flows once we get above those thresholds.”

A portion of the Pacific Coast Highway in Los Angeles County was closed as of Sunday afternoon due to mudflows in Topanga Canyon, the California Department of Transportation said. A flood advisory was issued for parts of Ventura County through Sunday evening, and forecasters expected snow to fall in the mountains.

One benefit that could come from the rain: It may help firefighters who are reining in multiple wildfires after weeks of windy and dry weather.

Los Angeles County crews spent much of the past week removing vegetation, shoring up slopes and reinforcing roads in devastated areas of the Palisades and Eaton fires, which reduced entire neighborhoods to rubble and ash after breaking out during powerful winds on Jan. 7.

The Palisades Fire, the largest of the blazes that destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 11 people, reached 90% containment Sunday. The Eaton Fire, which broke out near Altadena and has killed at least 16 people, was 98% contained.
The Hughes Fire, which ignited last week north of Los Angeles and caused evacuation orders or warnings for more than 50,000 people, was 95% contained as of Sunday evening.

In San Diego County, firefighters made progress to contain the smaller Border 2 Fire as it burned through a remote area of the Otay Mountain Wilderness near the U.S.-Mexico border.

Most of the region was forecast to get about an inch (about 2.5 centimeters) of precipitation over several days, but the National Weather Service warned of a risk of localized cloudbursts causing mud and debris to flow down hills.

“So the problem would be if one of those showers happens to park itself over a burn area,” weather service meteorologist Carol Smith said on social media. “That could be enough to create debris flows.”

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued an executive order last week to expedite cleanup efforts and mitigate the environmental impacts of fire-related pollutants. LA County supervisors also approved an emergency motion to install flood-control infrastructure and expedite and remove sediment in fire-impacted areas.

Fire crews filled sandbags for communities, while county workers installed barriers and cleared drainage pipes and basins.
Officials cautioned that ash in recent burn zones was a toxic mix of incinerated cars, electronics, batteries, building materials, paints, furniture and other household items. It contains pesticides, asbestos, plastics and lead. Residents were urged to wear protective gear while cleaning up.

Concerns about post-fire debris flows have been especially high since 2018, when the town of Montecito, up the coast from Los Angeles, was ravaged by mudslides after a downpour hit mountain slopes burned bare by a huge blaze. Hundreds of homes were damaged and 23 people died.

The rain was expected to snap a near-record streak of dry weather for Southern California. Much of the region has received less than 5% of the average rainfall for this point in the water year, which began Oct. 1, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.

Most of Southern California is currently in “extreme drought” or “severe drought,” according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Related: Progress is made on a huge fire north of Los Angeles while new fires erupt in Southern California