SoCal Likely To Get A Wet And Possibly White Christmas

LOS ANGELES, CA — Rain is expected to hit the Southern California region as early as this weekend, with chances of rain increasing on Christmas, weather forecasters say. The local mountains may even get a light dusting of snow, for those dreaming of a white Christmas.

Ryan Kittell, a meteorologist with the NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard, said he’s fairly certain the Los Angeles area will see rain sometime between Dec. 23 and Dec. 26, with the highest chance of rain “right around Christmas.”

"In the spirit of the holiday season, here's a gift for those who miss rain!All signs are pointing to a pattern shift with widespread rain across the region as early as next weekend, but more likely the week of Christmas," the National Weather Service posted on X. "Still some uncertainty in timing & totals."

“Folks should plan for at least a wet Christmas,” Kittell Said. “As far as amounts are concerned, it really could be anything from light to heavy.”

Kittell said the rain totals could range between 2 and 4 inches.

It’s too far out to predict if there will be snow in mountains such as Mount Baldy or Big Bear, but if there were to be snowfall, it would likely “be confined to the highest elevation of 7,000 feet or higher,” added Kittell.

Kyle Wheeler, a meteorologist with the NWS San Diego, said Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties will have a higher chance of rain closer to Christmas.

“I would say better chances than not that we will have some rain,” Wheeler said.

Currently, as Christmas is more than a week away, Wheeler said, “There's definitely a lot of uncertainty in the forecast.”

“By this weekend, we should have a good idea of what's going on,” Wheeler said.

In the meantime, portions of San Diego and Orange counties remain under a fog advisory through Wednesday mid-morning, according to the weather service.

"Low visibility could make driving conditions hazardous," the weather service warned.

Los Angeles County, on the other hand, is facing a wind advisory throughout the day Wednesday with wind gusts of up to 40 mph.

"Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects, the weather serviced warned. "Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result."