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LOS ANGELES (KTLA) – After a record-breaking start to the year with heavy rain, flooding and mudslides, metro Los Angeles is currently experiencing a potentially history-making dry spell.
The last time Los Angeles saw light rain was on May 5, when the city received 0.13 inches of rain, barely enough to soak the ground, according to the National Weather Service. This was followed by five consecutive months of less significant declines.
A light drizzle followed in November with only 0.14 inches of rain falling.
“Without measurable precipitation by Dec. 31, sensors in downtown Los Angeles will tie for the driest end of the year,” said Todd Hall, senior meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Los Angeles and Oxnard. It will be number one.”
This extended period of drought has predictably increased fire danger in Southern California, with Santa Ana winds igniting several wildfires. These include the Ventura County wildfire that destroyed about 200 homes and the Franklin Fire in Malibu, which destroyed 20 buildings.
Drought conditions are also starting to return. As of Dec. 17, a U.S. Department of Agriculture map shows Southern California as “abnormally dry.”
California Drought Status as of December 17, 2024 (USDA)
However, the long-term forecast calls for rain.
The model shows a 20% chance of rain in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve. Hall said the storm could also head toward California around New Year’s Day or the first week of January.
“Typically, we start seeing jet stream activity towards the middle of December,” Hall said. “1989 was expected to be another record dry year, but rain fell on December 31st and we lost our top spot.”
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