California facing more rain, travel problems starting off 2026
New storms for California will result in soggy outdoor plans and lead to significant travel problems on highways and at airports as millions head home from their New Year's gatherings over the weekend.
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While the heaviest and steadiest rain will shift northeast of coastal Southern California during the first part of New Year's Day, showers will dot the area during the afternoon. The risk of heavy rain and flooding will expand across Central and Northern California into next week with the risk of road closures from rain and snow over the passes.
As of 5 a.m. PST Thursday, the storm brought 1.08 inches of rain to Pasadena, California, with 2.81 inches falling on Chino, California.
Motorists are urged to travel with caution on New Year's Day in general across California due to areas of flash flooding, road washouts and mudslides.
The rain is following several much-needed days of dry weather. A siege of storms around Christmastime delivered several inches of rain that led to flash flooding, mudslides and rockslides throughout California.
A young girl leaves her flooded home following heavy rain, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Redding, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
In the last six weeks, much of coastal Southern California has received 60-80% of its entire annual rainfall and 80-90% of its seasonal rainfall. From Nov. 14 through Dec. 31, downtown Los Angeles has received 10.50 inches of rain, compared to a historical average of just over 3 inches. This amount is more than three times the average for the period and just a few inches shy of the annual average of 14.25 inches.
The latest storm into Thursday midday will bring a general 1-4 inches of rain to coastal areas of Southern California, with the greatest amounts along the south- and west-facing slopes of the Transverse Ranges. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ rainfall calls for up to 7 inches.
Thunderstorms will be accompanied by gusty winds.
Snow levels will be high for this first storm, high enough to prevent wintry conditions over the passes in Southern California, and minimal over the passes in the Sierra Nevada and Siskiyou Mountains.
The storm has broken up the latest round of persistent fog over California's Central Valley. In early December, what's known as tule fog lingered for weeks in the region.
Some rain will spread into San Francisco, Sacramento and much of the balance of Central and Northern California from the current storm and storms that follow spanning to Friday. Rain showers will also spill into the deserts in Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada, as well as Phoenix and Yuma, Arizona.
The storm is forecast to drift eastward and onshore from Friday to the weekend. As this motion occurs, there is the potential for an atmospheric river to develop and funnel heavy rain into coastal areas of Northern California. The storm that develops in Northern California from Friday to Saturday may end up bringing twice as much rain as Southern California from Wednesday to Thursday.
The same motion over the weekend will create colder conditions and lower freezing levels in the region. As this occurs, heavy snow will fall over the Sierra Nevada and Siskiyous, and eventually may bring wintry travel and possible road closures over the passes along Interstate 80 and I-5 in Northern California.
"By early next week, snow levels may dip to 4,500 feet in the northern Sierra Nevada," Storm Warning Meteorologist William Clark said. "This would correlate to a long stretch of wintry conditions along I-80 with several feet of snow possible over Donner Pass, California."
Both storms may lead to significant travel problems on highways and at airports as millions head home from their holiday ventures over the weekend.
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