Atmospheric river douses Southern California, threatening rockslides in LA's fire-ravaged areas

Source: AP

By JAIMIE DING and JULIE WATSON
Updated 6:31 PM CST, November 14, 2025
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — An unusually strong storm system called an atmospheric river was dousing Southern California on Friday and was expected to continue dumping heavy rain over the region for days as forecasters warned of rockslides and debris flows especially in the Los Angeles areas that were ravaged by wildfires earlier this year.

More than four inches of rain fell over coastal Santa Barbara County early Friday as the storm moved south toward Los Angeles, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters also warned of damaging winds and possibly even a tornado could form as they urged people to stay indoors.

While not usually associated with California, a tornado briefly touched down in a Los Angeles suburb during a storm in 2023, ripping roofs off a line of commercial buildings and injuring one person. A smaller one also hit a mobile home park in the Santa Barbara County city of Carpinteria, damaging about 25 residences.

The long plume of tropical moisture that formed over the Pacific Ocean began drenching the San Francisco Bay Area on Wednesday and was expected to unleash widespread rain over Southern California through Sunday with the heaviest amounts on Friday and Saturday nights. More than a foot of snow was predicted for parts of the Sierra Nevada.



Read more: https://apnews.com/article/rain-california-atmospheric-river-storm-flooding-wildfires-32c7a9b20f56fcc83863b746778df5ac