Dec 26 (Reuters) - Three days of heavy downpours that spawned flash flooding and mudslides across Southern California subsided on Friday, as residents of homes in the hard-hit mountain resort of Wrightwood began digging out mud and assessing damage.
The holiday storm drenched the greater Los Angeles basin with up to 6 inches of rain by Friday, with 12 inches or more measured in lower-elevation mountains east of the city, according to the National Weather Service.
The deluge, which began around Christmas Eve, was spawned by the region’s latest atmospheric river storm, a vast airborne stream of dense moisture siphoned from the Pacific and carried inland.
The torrential rains were accompanied by strong, gusty winds that toppled trees and power lines across the region, causing power outages. Heavy snow fell in upper mountain areas.
Even before the storm hit, authorities were issuing evacuation warnings to neighborhoods considered vulnerable to flash floods and debris flows, especially near hillsides previously ravaged by wildfires. Motorists were urged to avoid travel whenever possible.
