Rain comes to Southern California as early-season storm sweeps through
Rain has started to fall in Southern California this morning, leading to slick freeways and resulting in collisions and road closures.
Three lanes of the westbound Santa Monica Freeway and South Hoover Street in downtown Los Angeles were closed for about two hours to clean up a car crash at around 1 a.m.
Three of the southbound lanes and one northbound lane of the Golden State Freeway near San Fernando Mission Road in Sylmar were closed because a big rig hydroplaned and crashed into the center divider at around 1:30 a.m.
Rain was reported from the San Fernando Valley to Corona in Riverside County.
A wind advisory has been issued by the National Weather Service for parts of Los Angeles County until 10 p.m. Wednesday.
West winds from 20 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph are expected in the Antelope Valley, Palmdale and Lancaster.
A wind advisory is also in effect for Los Angeles County beach areas from noon to 4 p.m. Wednesday.
West winds from 15 to 30 mph with gusts up to 40 mph are expected in Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Zuma Beach, LAX, Long Beach, Palos Verdes, Redondo Beach, Santa Monica and Torrance.
A freeze watch is in effect in Lancaster, Palmdale and the Santa Clarita Valley from Thursday night until Friday morning.
Sub-freezing temperatures are expected as low as 25 degrees in Palmdale and Lancaster. Temperatures are expected to be as low as 28 degrees in the Santa Clarita Valley.
The possibility of mountain snow will increase Wednesday, with the Grapevine area of the Golden State (5) Freeway in northern Los Angeles County possibly affected by Wednesday night.
Temperatures are expected to be 10 to 20 degrees below normal on Wednesday, accompanied by gusty west-to-northwest winds that could persist through Thursday night, and through Friday morning in some mountain and valley areas.
There is a decent chance that snow may fall onto the I-5 Freeway through the Grapevine which may impact traffic through the main artery connecting central and Southern California. The San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains might start to see some snowflakes too, but this will depend on how much moisture manages to move onto the slopes.
Regardless, temperatures at the local resorts on Thursday will be around or below freezing.
Overnight lows across Southern California are expected to be chilly until the weekend but daytime temperatures should rebound to a comfortable level.
