Light rain was falling across much of the Los Angeles area Tuesday as brisk temperatures hovered in the low 60s giving Southern California a mid-winter feel on the first day of May.
A low-pressure system traveled south and unleashed the unseasonable weather, forecasters said.
Rain in L.A. and Orange counties was a “hit-or-miss affair,” said NWS meteorologist Rich Thompson. Where rain does materialize, less than a 10th of an inch is expected, although that will go up to a half-inch wherever thunderstorms show up.
“It’s a little system but every little bit helps,” said NWS meteorologist Rich Thompson, adding that such a system in Southern California at this time of the year is “nothing out of the ordinary.”
Temperatures, meanwhile, will run below average. Downtown L.A., for example, is forecast to have a high of 66, eight degrees below the normal, Thompson said. The same will hold true in the San Fernando Valley. Burbank, for instance, is forecast to reach a high of 66 Tuesday, compared to the average for this time of the year, which is 75.
Rain and snow are likely Tuesday in the San Gabriel Mountains in L.A. and Orange counties. But in urban areas, including the valleys, the chance of measurable precipitation was set at 30-40 percent. Similar conditions are expected Wednesday.
The NWS forecast showers in L.A. County Tuesday and highs of 51 degrees on Mount Wilson; 60 in Palmdale and Lancaster; 62 in Avalon; 63 in Saugus; 64 at LAX; 65 in Pasadena and San Gabriel; 66 in Downtown L.A., Long Beach and Burbank; and 67 in Woodland Hills.
Showers were also forecast in Orange County, along with highs of 57 in Laguna Beach; 58 in Newport Beach, San Clemente and Mission Viejo; 60 in Yorba Linda; and 61 in Irvine, Fullerton and Anaheim.
Wednesday’s temperatures will be very slightly higher amid continuing showers but sunny weather will return to the region Thursday, with highs 13 degrees higher in some Southland communities.