By Reginald Stanley. Posted February 1, 2019, 9:57 PM.

Southern California will be in for a wet, windy weekend as a major Pacific storm pummels the region beginning Friday night.

Following a moderate storm on Thursday, more rain and mountain snow will hit the region late Friday night, continuing into Saturday and Sunday before an additional, albeit weaker storm impacts the region Monday. A powerful cold front will arrive and peak Saturday afternoon through the evening. Rain rates during this period are expected to be rather high, prompting the National Weather Service to issue Flash Flood Watches to much of the Inland Empire, Orange County and parts of Los Angeles. This Flash Flood Watch is currently set to be in effect from Saturday morning through Saturday evening. Recent burn areas, including the Holy Fire, Canyon 1 Fire, and Cranston Fire, are all particularly vulnerable to flooding.

Snow levels will start high, above 7,000 feet above sea level. Following the passage of the cold front Saturday afternoon, snow levels are expected to lower to around 5,000-5,500 feet. The National Weather Service has issued Winter Storm Warnings for the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountain ranges from 4 PM Saturday to 9 PM Sunday, above 6,000 feet. Snowfall totals between 4 and 10 inches are forecast between 6,000 and 8,000 feet, with significantly higher amounts likely above 8,000 feet.

Storm totals through Saturday night are predicted to fall between 1.5 and 2 inches in the Temecula Valley, and between 1 and 1.5 inches across most of the rest of the Inland Empire, as well as Anza to the east. The Riverside metropolitan area is expected to be somewhat drier with between 0.5 and 1 inch predicted there. The high desert is expected to stay under one inch, while the even drier low deserts may see less than half an inch. Simi Valley, northwest of Los Angeles, may receive the most rain from the storm in the WeatherCurrents network, with between 2 and 3 inches of rain predicted. De Luz and Fallbrook may also receive up to 2 inches of rain. Coastal mountain slopes are expected to be hit particularly hard by the storm.

Showers will continue into Sunday, along with gradually lowering snow levels. An additional trough will bring showers well into Tuesday, however that storm will be much weaker and yield far less rainfall. Fair and warmer weather is expected to follow later in the week.